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column

n. countable
A2 Elementary Oxford US //ˈkɑɫəm// UK //kˈɒlʌm// col·umn General-service

n. a tall, vertical post that supports a building or stands as a monument. It can also mean a vertical list of facts or numbers on a page.

n. a vertical structural element in architecture used for support or decoration; by extension, a vertical arrangement of text or data on a page or screen.


SIMPLE

The white marble columns support the roof of the temple.

CONTEXTUAL

Please enter the total cost of each item in the right-hand column of the spreadsheet.

COMPLEX

The architect chose slender Corinthian columns to provide structural integrity while maintaining the elegant, airy aesthetic required by the client's vision.

Synonyms
Origin

From Middle English columne, columpne, columpe, borrowed from Old French columne, from Latin columna (“a column, pillar, post”), originally a collateral form of columen, contraction culmen (“a pillar, top, crown, summit”). Akin to Latin collis (“a hill”), celsus (“high”), probably to Ancient Greek κολοφών (kolophṓn, “top, summit”).

Usage

Commonly used in both physical architectural contexts and abstract data organization contexts.

Idioms1 entry

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