gantry

American  

[gan-tree] / ˈgæn tri /

noun

plural

gantries

1. a framework spanning a railroad track or tracks for displaying signals.

2. any of various spanning frameworks, as a bridgelike portion of certain cranes.

3. Rocketry. a frame consisting of scaffolds on various levels used to erect vertically launched rockets and spacecraft.

4. a framelike stand for supporting a barrel or cask.

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gantry British  

/ ˈɡæntrɪ /

noun

1. a bridgelike framework used to support a travelling crane, signals over a railway track, etc

2. Also called: gantry scaffold.  the framework tower used to attend to a large rocket on its launching pad

3. a supporting framework for a barrel or cask

4. 1. the area behind a bar where bottles, esp spirit bottles mounted in optics, are kept for use or display

   2. the range or quality of the spirits on view

      this pub's got a good gantry

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Etymology

Origin of gantry

1325–75; Middle English gauntre < dialectal Old French gantier wooden stand, frame, variant of chantier < Medieval Latin cantārius < Latin canthērius < Greek kanthḗlios packass

Example Sentences

Among the items destined for the scrap heap is the gantry, which once sheltered Soyuz rockets from the tropical weather.

From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026

These operate like conventional motorways but use overhead gantry signs and variable speed limits to regulate traffic flow.

From BBC • Feb. 6, 2026

In partnership with architects like Benjamin Albertson and Rad Studio, the robotic gantry system can produce more free-form designs than traditional construction, with tight curves, circles and other elements.

From Los Angeles Times • May 9, 2025

For four days, Hallam and more than three dozen other activists climbed a gantry and thereby blocked traffic in London’s critically important M25 motorway.

From Salon • Oct. 24, 2024

I could just imagine him high on a gantry, lying on his back like Michelangelo, working with a wrench on the fuel lines of one of his rockets.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

Related Words

• booth
• platform
• support
• table