quadrangle

[kwod-rang-guh l]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR quadrangle ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a plane figure having four angles and four sides, as a square.

a square or quadrangular space or court that is surrounded by a building or buildings, as on a college campus.

the building or buildings around such a space or court.

the area shown on one of the standard topographic map sheets published by the U.S. Geological Survey: approximately 17 miles (27 km) north to south and from 11 to 15 miles (17 to 24 km) east to west.

Origin of quadrangle

1400–50; late Middle English < Late Latin quadrangulum, noun use of neuter of Latin quadrangulus, quadriangulus four-cornered. See quadr-, angle¹

Related formsquad·ran·gled, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for quadrangle

square, rectangle, parallelogram, quadrilateral, rhombus, courtyard, quad, yard, forum, court, campus, enclosure

Examples from the Web for quadrangle

Contemporary Examples of quadrangle

In 2007 Colvin led the sale of Dennis Publishing to Quadrangle.
Reboot America! Participants
The Daily Beast
September 24, 2010
Lloyd Grove talks to him about the Quadrangle mess, dishing on Rahm, and what's wrong with Washington.
The Car Czar Fights Back
Lloyd Grove
September 20, 2010
Quadrangle was not the only investment house to pay placement fees to Morris or funnel money into Chooch.
Questions for Obama's Car Czar
Edward Jay Epstein
April 21, 2009
Nor did Rattner's Quadrangle fund limit its placement to the New York State Pensions Fund.
Questions for Obama's Car Czar
Edward Jay Epstein
April 21, 2009
Afterward, Quadrangle paid a $1.1 million placement fee to a small firm, Searle Co., with which Morris was affiliated.
Questions for Obama's Car Czar
Edward Jay Epstein
April 21, 2009

Historical Examples of quadrangle

These delicate arcades, in part restored, form a quadrangle.
In the Heart of Vosges
Matilda Betham-Edwards
There was a low iron gate leading out of the quadrangle into the grounds.
Henry Dunbar
M. E. Braddon
In the quadrangle he nodded curtly to Colonel Grant, who would have detained him.
The Snare
Rafael Sabatini
The palace was built in the form of a quadrangle around an open patio.
Sir Henry Morgan, Buccaneer
Cyrus Townsend Brady
I went across the quadrangle, unlocked the chapel door, and entered.
A Master of Mysteries
L. T. Meade

British Dictionary definitions for quadrangle

quadrangle

noun

geometry a plane figure consisting of four points connected by four lines. In a complete quadrangle, six lines connect all pairs of points

a rectangular courtyard, esp one having buildings on all four sidesOften shortened to: quad

the building surrounding such a courtyard

Derived Formsquadrangular (kwɒˈdræŋɡjʊlə), adjective

Word Origin for quadrangle

C15: from Late Latin quadrangulum figure having four corners

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 quadrangle

late 14c., from Old French quadrangle (13c.) and directly from Late Latin quadrangulum "four-sided figure," noun use of neuter of Latin adjective quadrangulus "having four quarters," from Latin quattuor "four" (see four) + angulus "angle" (see angle (n.)). Meaning "four-sided court between buildings" is from 1590s.