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BALUSTER

 - 3 dictionary results

bal⋅us⋅ter

[bal-uh-ster]
–noun
1. Architecture. any of a number of closely spaced supports for a railing.
2. balusters, a balustrade.
3. any of various symmetrical supports, as furniture legs or spindles, tending to swell toward the bottom or top.

Origin:
1595–1605; < F, MF balustre < It balaustro pillar shaped like the calyx of the pomegranate flower, ult. < L balaustium < Gk balaústion pomegranate flower


bal⋅us⋅tered, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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bal·us·ter   (bāl'ə-stər)   
n.  
    1. One of the upright, usually rounded or vase-shaped supports of a balustrade.

    2. An upright support, such as a furniture leg, having a similar shape.

  1. One of the supporting posts of a handrail.


[French balustre, from Italian balaustro, from balaustra, pomegranate flower (from a resemblance to the post), from Latin balaustium, from Greek balaustion.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

baluster 
"support for a railing," 1602, from Fr. balustre, It. balaustro (see balustrade).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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