column

American  

[kol-uhm] / ˈkɒl əm /

noun

• columns
  plural

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 (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.

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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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Synonym Usage

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

Derived Forms

• columnar
  adjective
• columnated
  adjective
• columned
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• columns
  plural

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

Explanation

Someone who writes a column for a newspaper provides an article that expresses his or her viewpoint on a regular basis, such as a column about local politics which appears in the Sunday edition. If your boss says, “I’m going to give you a column!” you may be getting a regular writing gig, or you may be getting a large pillar typically used to support a building. (You’ll know which it is when you see it.)Column also refers to something that resembles a pillar or stack, such as a column of smoke, or columns of numbers that must be added. Column also describes lines of text that form long rectangles on a page, separated by a thin line of space.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

column columns

In 2013, multiple media outlets accused Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul of plagiarizing in his speeches, newspaper column and his 2012 book from a variety of sources, including Wikipedia.

From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2026

A Prudie reader has some wise words for how to navigate that situation—and readers of the column weigh in on a variety of other dilemmas, too.

From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026

As this column was being written on Aug. 19, for example, the SWR slipped from 5.0% to 4.9%.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026

Bill Plaschke should have consulted with his colleague Laurence Darmiento before writing his ill-informed column on the sale of the Lakers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026

Instead King wheeled around, and to almost everyone’s surprise, each rank in the column wheeled in turn as he began to lead the marchers back to Selma.

From "Because They Marched" by Russell Freedman

“Thanks for including me,” wrote Denise Dresser, known for her acerbic anti-government columns.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

The writer Ross Barkan, whose forthcoming book about Zohran Mamdani was suspended following accusations of plagiarism in his columns, apologized for not citing others’ work “as aggressively as I should have.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

This lava flowed and then cooled, contracted and cracked, creating around eight-sided basalt columns.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

The arboreal columns, for instance, differ in materials, colors, shapes and decorative features.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Scores of stragglers dropped behind the retreating columns, hobbling alone or in twos or threes and struggling desperately to stay in touch with their units.

From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman

Related Words

• file
• list