pendant

American  

[pen-duhnt] / ˈpɛn dənt /

noun

1. a hanging ornament, as an earring or the main piece suspended from a necklace.

2. an ornament suspended from a roof, vault, or ceiling.

3. a hanging electrical lighting fixture; chandelier.

4. that by which something is suspended, as the ringed stem of a watch.

5. a match, parallel, companion, or counterpart.

6. Nautical. Also a length of rope attached to a masthead, the end of a yardarm, etc., and having a block or thimble secured to its free end.

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adjective

1. pendent.

pendant British  

/ ˈpɛndənt /

noun

1. 1. an ornament that hangs from a piece of jewellery

   2. a necklace with such an ornament

2. a hanging light, esp a chandelier

3. a carved ornament that is suspended from a ceiling or roof

4. something that matches or complements something else

5. Also called: pennant.  nautical a length of wire or rope secured at one end to a mast or spar and having a block or other fitting at the lower end

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adjective

1. a variant spelling of pendent

Other Word Forms

• nonpendant adjective
• pendanted adjective
• pendantlike adjective
• unpendant adjective

Etymology

Origin of pendant

1300–50; Middle English pendaunt < Anglo-French; Middle French pendant, noun use of present participle of pendre to hang < Vulgar Latin *pendere for Latin pendēre. See pend, -ant

Explanation

If you’re wearing a necklace with a large gold heart on a delicate chain, then you have a pendant, an ornament that hangs on a chain. The word pendant traces back to the Latin word, pendere, meaning "to hang," which tips you off that pendant is a word describing something that hangs, like an ornament that hangs on a chain or a type of light that hangs from the ceiling. As an adjective, pendant means "held from above," like the pendant rock formations that hang from the cave's ceiling.

Example Sentences

“Now I Surrender,” a pendant work of revisionism that centers on Geronimo’s defiance and defeat, is a longer, more complicated novel.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026

He’s wearing a gold-rope chain with the Universal logo as a pendant, and gold-rimmed sunglasses that are square and lightly tinted.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 21, 2026

The store holds showstoppers such as Roman statue heads and a gold 'three lions' pendant from the 13th-14th Century.

From BBC • Jan. 30, 2026

One of Norfolk's more unusual 2024 finds was an early medieval gold coin, pierced to be worn as a pendant.

From BBC • Jan. 20, 2026

At the base of the ear pendant, a serpent’s fangs held a small loop.

From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall

Related Words

• dangling
• hanging
• overhanging
• pendent
• pendulous
• pensile