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steeple

 [stee-puhl]   Origin

stee·ple

   [stee-puhl] noun, verb, -pled, -pling.
noun
1.
an ornamental construction, usually ending in a spire, erected on a roof or tower of a church, public building, etc.
2.
a tower terminating in such a construction.
3.
(loosely) a spire.
verb (used with object)
4.
to provide with or form into a steeple or steeplelike configuration.

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Steeple is one of our favorite verbs.
So is fletcherise. Does it mean:
to run away hurriedly; flee.
to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly.
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Origin:
before 1000; Middle English stepel steeple, tower, Old English stēpel tower. See steep1, -le

Related forms
stee·pled, adjective
stee·ple·less, adjective
stee·ple·like, adjective
un·stee·pled, adjective

Can be confused: spire, steeple.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To steeple
Collins
World English Dictionary
steeple (ˈstiːpəl)
 
—n
1.  a tall ornamental tower that forms the superstructure of a church, temple, etc
2.  such a tower with the spire above it
3.  any spire or pointed structure
 
[Old English stēpel; see steep1]
 
'steepled
 
—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
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

steeple
O.E. stepel (Mercian), stiepel (W.Saxon) "high tower" (related to steap "high, lofty"), from P.Gmc. *staupilaz (see steep (adj.)). Steeplechase first recorded 1793 (earlier steeplehunt, 1772), originally a race with a visible church steeple as a goal. Steeplejack "one who
EXPAND
climbs steeples, chimneys, etc. to make repairs" is attested from 1881.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

steeple

tall ornamental tower, sometimes a belfry, usually attached to an ecclesiastical or public building. The steeple is usually composed of a series of diminishing stories and is topped by a spire, cupola, or pyramid (qq.v.), although in ordinary usage the term steeple denotes the entire structure

Learn more about steeple with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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