Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

caryatid

[kar-ee-at-id]
See more synonyms for caryatid on Thesaurus.com
noun, plural car·y·at·ids, car·y·at·i·des [kar-ee-at-i-deez] /ˌkær iˈæt ɪˌdiz/. Architecture.
  1. a sculptured female figure used as a column.Compare atlas(def 5).
Show More

Origin of caryatid

1555–65; < Latin Caryātides (singular Caryātis) < Greek Karyā́tides columns shaped like women, literally, women of Karýai, Laconia
Related formscar·y·at·i·dal, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

monumentcylindermonolithbuttresstotempedestalsupportpropbraceobeliskstandarduprightpoststaypiershaftmasttowercolonnadepilaster

Examples from the Web for caryatid

Historical Examples

  • The one on this side is resigned, and as beautiful as a caryatid.

    Rodin: The Man and his Art

    Judith Cladel

  • She stands in the field like a caryatid, like a symbol of fertile nature.

  • I do not know its history, though some one assured me that it was a caryatid.

    The Near East

    Robert Hichens

  • It stood probably in the portico and may have served as a Caryatid.

  • A restricted use of the Caryatid Porch is a certain inference from the following facts.

British Dictionary definitions for caryatid

caryatid

noun plural -ids or -ides (-ɪˌdiːz)
  1. a column, used to support an entablature, in the form of a draped female figureCompare telamon
Show More
Derived Formscaryatidal, caryatidean, caryatic or caryatidic (ˌkærɪəˈtɪdɪk), adjective

Word Origin

C16: from Latin Caryātides, from Greek Karuatides priestesses of Artemis at Karuai (Caryae), village in Laconia
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for caryatid

n.

"carved female figure used as a column," 1560s, from Middle French cariatide, from Latin caryatides, from Greek Karyatides (singular Karyatis) "priestesses of Artemis at Caryae" (Greek Karyai), a town in Laconia where dance festivals were held in Artemis' temple.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper