exedra
Americannoun
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exedrae
plural
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(in ancient Greece and Rome) a room or covered area open on one side, used as a meeting place.
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a permanent outdoor bench, semicircular in plan and having a high back.
noun
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a building, room, portico, or apse containing a continuous bench, used in ancient Greece and Rome for holding discussions
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an outdoor bench in a recess
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of exedra
1700–10; < Latin: hall furnished with seats < Greek exédra (covered) walk with seats, equivalent to ex- ex- 3 + ( h ) édra seat, bench
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The exedra — a Greek term for what became a popular garden feature in the 18th century — has a statue of Eros at its center in commemoration of the Seilheimers’ 40th wedding anniversary.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 24, 2020
A collaboration by Augustus Saint-Gaudens on an exedra designed by architect Stanford White, the statue, cast in 1880, stands above reliefs of two female figures representing Loyalty and Courage.
From New York Times ● Sep. 23, 2018
It consists of an exedra and pedestal surmounted by a figure of Peace . . . backed by an illuminated cross.
From Time Magazine Archive
At that instant a tremendous shock shook the house to its foundations; the hanging lamps lurched; the exedra jarred and in an instant several of the servants appeared at various openings into passages.
From The City of Delight A Love Drama of the Siege and Fall of Jerusalem by Frank X. Leyendecker
Classicus bowed, glanced at Junia and again at Agrippa, and made a place for Lydia on the exedra, so that he might sit on a taboret at her feet.
From Saul of Tarsus A Tale of the Early Christians by Elizabeth Miller
Four roofless exedrae, or terraced pits, provide outdoor spots for plays, lectures, flirting, and even small protest meetings.
From Time Magazine Archive
In summer apartments and in exedrae where there is no smoke nor soot to hurt them, they should be made in relief.
From The Ten Books on Architecture by Vitruvius Pollio
Picture galleries, like exedrae, should be constructed of generous dimensions.
From The Ten Books on Architecture by Vitruvius Pollio
Inwardly disturbed, yet meeting the lady's look with a smile, Coryna turned aside between the marble columns into one of the exedrae or rooms for conversation.
From The Mother of St. Nicholas A Story of Duty and Peril by Grant Balfour
But in the case of exedrae or square oeci, let the height be brought up to one and one half times the width.
From The Ten Books on Architecture by Vitruvius Pollio
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