ziggurat
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of ziggurat
First recorded in 1875–80, ziggurat is from the Akkadian word ziqquratu
Explanation
A ziggurat is a rectangular temple or terraced mound built by ancient Assyrians and Babylonians. Visit Iran and you might have a chance to see the Choqa Zanbil, one of the best preserved ancient ziggurats. Ziggurat comes from the Assyrian ziqquratu meaning "height, pinnacle." Some people believe the top of each ziggurat was used as a shrine. Others believe it was a high place where priests could seek refuge during floods. Today, this tiered rectangular shape still inspires certain architecture, particularly hotels or massive buildings.
Vocabulary lists containing ziggurat
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Kadhimi spoke in his stylish office in a building that is a modern recreation of the ancient tower of Ziggurat.
From Washington Post • Apr. 13, 2022
According to the State Board for Antiquities and Heritage director for Ur, Ali Kadhim Ghanim, the complex next to the Ziggurat dates back to about 1900 BC.
From Reuters • Feb. 22, 2021
All that is left of the great city that was once home to 80,000 is rubble and the remains of a huge Ziggurat.
From Fox News • Jan. 21, 2020
Peter Balakian: Well, the ziggurat trilogy began with a poem, forty-five sections or so, in my book of 2010 called “Ziggurat,” and that poem was called “A-Train / Ziggurat / Elegy.”
From The New Yorker • Mar. 20, 2019
To his surprise he found the passage he had followed opened perhaps halfway up what must be the great Ziggurat of Beelzebub.
From Astounding Stories, March, 1931 by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
