silo

[ sahy-loh ]

noun

, plural si·los.

1. a structure, typically cylindrical, in which fodder or forage is kept:

   The dairy farm's two biggest buildings were the barn and the silo full of feed for the cows.

2. a pit or underground space for storing grain, green feeds, etc.
3. Military. an underground installation constructed of concrete and steel, designed to house a ballistic missile and the equipment for firing it.
4. a group, unit, enterprise, etc., that is isolated from others or functions independently, typically viewed as not deriving the benefits of interrelationships or collaboration:

   Fundraising department silos happen when different teams don't share their ideas and plans.

5. da·ta si·lo [dey, -t, uh, sahy-loh, dat, -, uh], Computers. an unintegrated data repository that cannot share its stored data with other systems, subsystems, or applications:

   When an organization deploys a stand-alone solution to improve operations, it risks creating a data silo that may present difficulties when trying to scale throughout the enterprise.

verb (used with object)

, si·loed, si·lo·ing.

1. to put into or preserve in a silo, as fodder, grain, or missiles.
2. to separate or isolate (a group, unit, enterprise, etc.) from others:

   We Americans are now more sheltered and siloed in our sources of news than ever before.

silo

/ ˈsaɪləʊ /

noun

1. a pit, trench, horizontal container, or tower, often cylindrical in shape, in which silage is made and stored
2. a strengthened underground position in which missile systems are sited for protection against attack

Word History and Origins

Origin of silo¹

First recorded in 1825–35; from Spanish: “place for storing grain, hay, etc.,” originally, “subterranean”; further origin uncertain

Word History and Origins

Origin of silo¹

C19: from Spanish, perhaps from Celtic

Example Sentences

Monitoring grain silos, at very least, qualifies for the first part.

From TechCrunch

By combining their wisdom rather than searching for cures in silos, the community of scientists and researchers is speeding the progress exponentially.

From Fortune

Both of these are massive centralized state architectures where the whole point is to remove the technical silos between different state and other kinds of databases, and to make sure that these databases are centrally linked.

From MIT Technology Review

This was the very breakthrough she needed for going from being caught outside in a separate silo to working inside with the development team.

From Search Engine Land

We had each been in our own silos trying to advocate with our own local legislators.

From Voice of San Diego

There appear to be two crosses atop this overall structure, one on the main house and a larger one on the silo.

From The Daily Beast

Is Correa ready to convert his impoverished nation into a digital missile silo aimed at the giant in El Norte?

From The Daily Beast

The largest and tallest building in Kabul is a grain silo and bread factory, built by the Soviets.

From The Daily Beast

Even more wistfully, he was a passionate generalist in a time in which our ideas and expertise have become more and more silo-ed.

From The Daily Beast

Later: a tall, silo-like cement building, apparently used for irrigation.

From The Daily Beast

At the far end of the field he could dimly discern on a little ridge of land a great barn with a huge silo.

From Project Gutenberg

The latest movement was the silo system, the burying of grass under pressure, instead of making it into hay.

From Project Gutenberg

As a rule the crop should be mown 654 when in full flower, and deposited in the silo on the day of its cutting.

From Project Gutenberg

The material is spread in uniform layers over the floor of the silo, and closely packed and trodden down.

From Project Gutenberg

Maize is cut a few days before it is ripe and is shredded before being elevated into the silo.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• cellar
• granary
• storehouse