column

noun col·umn \ˈkä-ləm also ˈkäl-yəm\

: a long post made of steel, stone, etc., that is used as a support in a building

: a group of printed or written items (such as numbers or words) shown one under the other down a page

: any one of two or more sections of print that appear next to each other on a page and are separated by a blank space or a line

Full Definition of COLUMN

a : a vertical arrangement of items printed or written on a page

b : one of two or more vertical sections of a printed page separated by a rule or blank space

c : an accumulation arranged vertically : stack

d : one in a usually regular series of newspaper or magazine articles <gossip column>

: a supporting pillar; especially : one consisting of a usually round shaft, a capital, and a base

a : something resembling a column in form, position, or function <a column of water>

b : a tube or cylinder in which a chromatographic separation takes place

: a long row (as of soldiers)

: one of the vertical lines of elements of a determinant or matrix

: a statistical category or grouping <put another game in the win column>

— col·umned \-ləmd, -yəmd\ adjective

See column defined for English-language learners

See column defined for kids

Illustration of COLUMN

Origin of COLUMN

Middle English columne, from Anglo-French columpne, from Latin columna, from columen top; akin to Latin collis hill — more at hill

First Known Use: 15th century

Related to COLUMN

Synonyms: line, cue, file, queue, range, string, train

Other Architecture Terms

buttress, casita, cornice, fanlight, garret, lintel, parapet, pilaster, plinth

Rhymes with COLUMN

slalom, solemn

COLUMN Defined for Kids

column

noun col·umn \ˈkä-ləm\

Definition of COLUMN for Kids

: one of two or more vertical sections of a printed page <Read the article in the left column.>

: a group of items shown one under the other down a page <a column of figures>

: a regular feature in a newspaper or magazine <a sports column>

: a pillar used to support a building

: something that is tall or thin in shape or arrangement <a column of smoke>

: a long straight row <a column of soldiers>

Medical Dictionary

column

noun col·umn \ˈkäl-əm\

Medical Definition of COLUMN

: a longitudinal subdivision of the spinal cord that resembles a column or pillar: as a : any of the principal longitudinal subdivisions of gray matter or white matter in each lateral half of the spinal cord—see dorsal horn, gray column, lateral column 1, ventral horn; compare funiculus a b : any of a number of smaller bundles of spinal nerve fibers : fasciculus