Pillar \Pil"lar\, n. [OE. pilerF. pilier, LL. pilare, pilarium,
pilarius, fr. L. pila a pillar. See Pile a heap.]
1. The general and popular term for a firm, upright,
insulated support for a superstructure; a pier, column, or
post; also, a column or shaft not supporting a
superstructure, as one erected for a monument or an
ornament.
Jacob set a pillar upon her grave. --Gen. xxxv.
20.
The place . . . vast and proud, Supported by a
hundred pillars stood. --Dryden.
2. Figuratively, that which resembles such a pillar in
appearance, character, or office; a supporter or mainstay;
as, the Pillars of Hercules; a pillar of the state. ``You
are a well-deserving pillar.'' --Shak.
By day a cloud, by night a pillar of fire. --Milton.
3. (R. C. Ch.) A portable ornamental column, formerly carried
before a cardinal, as emblematic of his support to the
church. [Obs.]
--Skelton.
4. (Man.) The center of the volta, ring, or manege ground,
around which a horse turns.
From pillar to post, hither and thither; to and fro; from
one place or predicament to another; backward and forward.
[Colloq.]
Pillar saint. See Stylite.
Pillars of the fauces. See Fauces, 1.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
|