torii
[tawr-ee-ee, tohr-]
- (in Japan) a form of decorative gateway or portal, consisting of two upright wooden posts connected at the top by two horizontal crosspieces, commonly found at the entrance to Shinto temples.
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Origin of torii
1720–30; < Japanese, equivalent to tori bird + (w)i perch
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for torii
Historical Examples
This latter I will describe when Japan, the land of the torii, is the topic.
Travels in the Far EastEllen Mary Hayes Peck
All the beautiful gateways or torii, as they are called, are works of art.
The Critic in the OrientGeorge Hamlin Fitch
In subject and in manner, it is the Torii tradition that he carries on.
Chats on Japanese PrintsArthur Davison Ficke
Kiyonobu I, the founder of the Torii line, was born in 1664 and died in 1729.
Chats on Japanese PrintsArthur Davison Ficke
The usual etymology of Torii is bird-perch; from Torĭ, a bird.
An Artist's Letters From JapanJohn La Farge
torii
- a gateway, esp one at the entrance to a Japanese Shinto temple
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Word Origin
C19: from Japanese, literally: a perch for birds
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for torii
n.
singular and plural, "gateway to a Shinto temple," Japanese, from tori "bird" + i "to sit, to perch."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper