silo

[sahy-loh]

noun, plural si·los.

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

a pit or underground space for storing grain, green feeds, etc.

Military. an underground installation constructed of concrete and steel, designed to house a ballistic missile and the equipment for firing it.

verb (used with object), si·loed, si·lo·ing.

to put into or preserve in a silo.

Origin of silo

1825–35; < Spanish: place for storing grain, hay, etc., orig. subterranean; ulterior origin uncertain

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

British Dictionary definitions for siloing

silo

noun plural -los

a pit, trench, horizontal container, or tower, often cylindrical in shape, in which silage is made and stored

a strengthened underground position in which missile systems are sited for protection against attack

Word Origin for silo

C19: from Spanish, perhaps from Celtic

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 siloing

silo

1835, from Spanish silo, traditionally derived from Latin sirum (nominative sirus), from Greek siros "a pit to keep corn in." "The change from r to l in Spanish is abnormal and Greek siros was a rare foreign term peculiar to regions of Asia Minor and not likely to emerge in Castilian Spain" [Barnhart]. Alternatively, the Spanish word is from a pre-Roman Iberian language word represented by Basque zilo, zulo "dugout, cave or shelter for keeping grain." Meaning "underground housing and launch tube for a guided missile" is attested from 1958.