Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Nearby Words

pediment

 - 3 dictionary results
Cornice
Save 25-85% off American Blinds Cornices. Over 6 Million Customers!
AmericanBlinds.com

ped⋅i⋅ment

  [ped-uh-muhnt]
Use pediment in a Sentence
–noun
1. (in classical architecture) a low gable, typically triangular with a horizontal cornice and raking cornices, surmounting a colonnade, an end wall, or a major division of a façade.
2. any imitation of this, often fancifully treated, used to crown an opening, a monument, etc., or to form part of a decorative scheme.
3. Geology. a gently sloping rock surface at the foot of a steep slope, as of a mountain, usually thinly covered with alluvium.
Origin:
1655–65; earlier pedament, pedement, alter., by assoc. with L pēs (s. ped-) foot, of earlier peremint, perh. an unlearned alter. of pyramid; (def. 3) by construal as pedi- + -ment

Related forms:
ped⋅i⋅men⋅tal  [ped-uh-men-tl] , adjective
ped⋅i⋅ment⋅ed  [ped-uh-men-tid, -muhn-] , adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To pediment
Cornice
Save 25-85% off American Blinds Cornices. Over 6 Million Customers!
AmericanBlinds.com
ped·i·ment   (pěd'ə-mənt)   
n.  

    1. A wide, low-pitched gable surmounting the façade of a building in the Grecian style.

    2. A triangular element, similar to or derivative of a Grecian pediment, used widely in architecture and decoration.

  2. Geology A broad, gently sloping rock surface at the base of a steeper slope, often covered with alluvium, formed primarily by erosion.


[Alteration (influenced by Latin pēs, ped-, foot) of earlier perement, probably alteration of pyramid.]
ped'i·men'tal (-měn'tl) adj., ped'i·ment'ed adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

pediment 
triangular part of the facade of a Gk.-style building, 1664, alteration of periment, peremint (1592), apparently a dial. garbling of pyramid, the connection perhaps being the triangular shape. Sometimes associated with ped- "foot." But L. pedamentum meant "vine-stalk, prop," and It. pedamento at the time this word entered Eng. meant "foundation, basework, footing."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see pediment on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way