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6 dictionary results for: pier
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
pier 
[peer] Pronunciation Key
[peer] Pronunciation Key –noun
| 1. | a structure built on posts extending from land out over water, used as a landing place for ships, an entertainment area, a strolling place, etc.; jetty. |
| 2. | (in a bridge or the like) a support for the ends of adjacent spans. |
| 3. | a square pillar. |
| 4. | a portion of wall between doors, windows, etc. |
| 5. | a pillar or post on which a gate or door is hung. |
| 6. | a support of masonry, steel, or the like for sustaining vertical pressure. |
| 7. | a long passageway or corridor that extends from a central area of a building, esp. one at an airport that leads to boarding gates. |
[Origin: bef. 1150; ME pere, earlier (perh. late OE) per < AL pera, péra pier of a bridge]
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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| pier
(pîr) Pronunciation Key
n.
[Middle English per, bridge support, partly from Norman French pere, piere (from Old French puiere, a support, from puie, from puier, to support, from Vulgar Latin *podiāre, from Latin podium, platform; see podium) and partly from Medieval Latin pera (from Old North French pire, piere, breakwater, possibly from Latin petra, rock, from Greek petrā; see per-2 in Indo-European roots).] |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
pier
pier
c.1150, "support of a span of a bridge," from M.L. pera, of unknown origin, perhaps from O.N.Fr. pire "a breakwater," from V.L. *petricus, from L. petra "rock." Meaning "solid structure in a harbor, used as a landing place for vessels," is attested from 1453.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| pier | |
noun | |
| 1. | a platform built out from the shore into the water and supported by piles; provides access to ships and boats |
| 2. | (architecture) a vertical supporting structure (as a portion of wall between two doors or windows) |
| 3. | a support for two adjacent bridge spans |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
U.S. Gazetteer - Cite This Source - Share This
Luna Pier, MI (city, FIPS 49700) Location: 41.80505 N, 83.44245 W
Population (1990): 1507 (606 housing units)
Area: 4.0 sq km (land), 0.4 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 48157
Union Pier, MI Zip code(s): 49129
Narragansett Pier, RI (CDP, FIPS 48700) Location: 41.42710 N, 71.46691 W
Population (1990): 3721 (2007 housing units)
Area: 9.4 sq km (land), 0.8 sq km (water)
U.S. Gazetteer, U.S. Census Bureau
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Pier
Pier\, n. [OE. pere, OF. piere a stone, F. pierre, fr. L. petra, Gr. ?. Cf. Petrify.]1. (Arch.) (a) Any detached mass of masonry, whether insulated or supporting one side of an arch or lintel, as of a bridge; the piece of wall between two openings. (b) Any additional or auxiliary mass of masonry used to stiffen a wall. See Buttress. 2. A projecting wharf or landing place. Abutment pier, the pier of a bridge next the shore; a pier which by its strength and stability resists the thrust of an arch. Pier glass, a mirror, of high and narrow shape, to be put up between windows. Pier table, a table made to stand between windows.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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