menhir

American  

[men-hir] / ˈmɛn hɪr /

noun

Archaeology.

1. an upright monumental stone standing either alone or with others, as in an alignment, found chiefly in Cornwall and Brittany.

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menhir British  

/ ˈmɛnhɪə /

noun

1. a single standing stone, often carved, dating from the middle Bronze Age in the British Isles and from the late Neolithic Age in W Europe

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Etymology

Origin of menhir

1830–40; < Breton phrase men hir, equivalent to men stone + hir long

Example Sentences

The monoliths that form the basis of the wall are similar to - but predate - the famous menhirs that dot the Brittany countryside and are associated with the Neolithic culture.

From BBC

In the latest adventure, Obelix -- the menhir delivery man with superhuman strength -- suffers a particularly bad bout of "saudade", and at one point laments: "I'm feeling down while being overjoyed."

From Barron's

The stones, or menhirs — some as tall as six feet — buttressed a massive capstone set in a tumulus, or a mound of earth and pebbles.

From New York Times

He soon dropped to one knee in front of a statue of St. Anne carved into a menhir, pulled out a ring and proposed.

From New York Times

So the fury of Frank’s finger passes to those of us who have been benumbed by today’s proliferating, meaningless urban menhirs—street after street a corridor of dead souls.

From The New Yorker