column

American  

[kol-uhm] / ˈkɒl əm /

noun

1. Architecture.

   1. a rigid, relatively slender, upright support, composed of relatively few pieces.

   2. 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 (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.

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column British  

/ ˈkɒləmˌneɪtɪd, ˈkɒləm, kəˈlʌmnə /

noun

1. an upright post or pillar usually having a cylindrical shaft, a base, and a capital

2. 1. a form or structure in the shape of a column

      a column of air

   2. 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

   1. any of two or more vertical sections of type on a printed page, esp on a newspaper page

   2. 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

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Related Words

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.

Other Word Forms

• columnar adjective
• columnated adjective
• columned adjective

Etymology

Origin of column

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

Example Sentences

Yurii Ihnat, spokesman of the Ukrainian Air Force, said late on Tuesday afternoon that a "large number of drones" had entered Ukrainian airspace from the north of the country, "effectively moving in columns".

From BBC

In this column, I wrote about a high-profile spy drama released last year that casts unification as righteous, worth any sacrifice, and historically inevitable.

From The Wall Street Journal

According to analysts interviewed for this column, the primary culprit is the game that companies and analysts play to keep expectations low before earnings reports.

From Barron's

Here are the total returns for all five funds for longer periods, with the funds’ expense ratios in the rightmost column:

From MarketWatch

Mr. Riley’s column reminds me of Oscar Wilde’s definition of a cynic: “A man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• file
• list