col·umn

[kol-uhm]
noun
1.
Architecture.
a.
a rigid, relatively slender, upright support, composed of relatively few pieces.
b.
a decorative pillar, most often composed of stone and typically having a cylindrical or polygonal shaft with a capital and usually a base.
2.
any columnlike object, mass, or formation: a column of smoke.
3.
a vertical row or list: Add this column of figures.
4.
a vertical arrangement on a page of horizontal lines of type, usually typographically justified: There are three columns on this page.
5.
a regular feature or series of articles in a newspaper, magazine, or the like, usually having a readily identifiable heading and the byline of the writer or editor, that reports or comments upon a particular field of interest, as politics, theater, or etiquette, or which may contain letters from readers, answers to readers' queries, etc.
6.
a long, narrow formation of troops in which there are more members in line in the direction of movement than at right angles to the direction ( distinguished from line ).
7.
a formation of ships in single file.
8.
Botany. a columnlike structure in an orchid flower, composed of the united stamens and style.
Origin:
1400–50; late Middle English columne < Latin columna, equivalent to colum(e)n peak + -a feminine ending; akin to excel; replacing late Middle English colompne < Anglo-French < Latin, as above

Related forms
col·umned [kol-uhmd] , col·um·nat·ed [kol-uhm-ney-tid] , adjective

Synonyms
1. Column, pillar refer to upright supports in architectural structures. Pillar is the general word: the pillars supporting the roof. A column is a particular kind of pillar, especially one with an identifiable shaft, base, and capital: columns of the Corinthian order.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To Column
00:10
Column is always a great word to know.
So is seedless vascular plant. Does it mean:
plants with true roots, stems and leaves dispersed by spores because they don't produce seeds
plants with the vascular tissues xylem and phloem for transporting water and nutrients
LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...
Collins
World English Dictionary
column (ˈkɒləm) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  an upright post or pillar usually having a cylindrical shaft, a base, and a capital
2.  a.  a form or structure in the shape of a column: a column of air
 b.  a monument
3.  a row, line, or file, as of people in a queue
4.  military a narrow formation in which individuals or units follow one behind the other
5.  journalism
 a.  any of two or more vertical sections of type on a printed page, esp on a newspaper page
 b.  a regular article or feature in a paper: the fashion column
6.  a vertical array of numbers or mathematical terms
7.  botany a long structure in a flower, such as that of an orchid, consisting of the united stamens and style
8.  anatomy, zoology any elongated structure, such as a tract of grey matter in the spinal cord or the stalk of a crinoid
 
[C15: from Latin columna, from columen top, peak; related to Latin collis hill]
 
columnar
 
—adj
 
'columned
 
—adj
 
columnated
 
—adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

column
c.1440, "vertical division of a page," from O.Fr. colombe, from L. columna "pillar," collateral form of columen "top, summit," from PIE base *kel- "to project" (see hill). Sense of "matter written for a newspaper" dates from 1785. Literal, architectural sense is attested from 1481.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

column col·umn (kŏl'əm)
n.
Any of various tubular or pillarlike supporting structures in the body, such as the spinal column, each generally having a single tissue origin and function.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
FOLDOC
Computing Dictionary

column definition


1. A named slice through a database table that includes the same field of each row. For example, a telephone directory table might have a row for each person with a name column and a telephone number column.
2. A line of memory cells in a dynamic random-access memory, that is selected by a particular column address.
(2007-10-12)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © Denis Howe 2010 http://foldoc.org
Cite This Source
Example sentences
Have each student create a two-column chart with five rows, leaving plenty of room in each row for notes.
Then an establishment newspaper offered him a column-writing about foreign, but not domestic, affairs.
It's not unusual that a journalist calls the subject of a piece before actually
  publishing the article or column.
We'll dig into that and a lot more in a team-by-team breakdown column.
Partners:WordBloglinesCitysearchThe Daily BeastAsk AnswersAsk KidsLife123SendoriHome Advisor
Copyright © 2013 Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
About PRIVACY POLICY Terms API Careers Advertise with Us Contact Us Suggest a Word Help
  • Please Login or Sign Up to use the Recent Searches feature
FAVORITES
RECENT