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pedestal |
2 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Pedestal \Ped"es*tal\, n. [Sp. pedestal; cf F. pi['e]destal, It piedestallo fr L. es pedis, foot + OHG. stal standing place station, place akin to E. stall. See {Foot}, and {Stall}, and {Footstall}.] 1. (Arch.) The base or foot of a column, statue, vase, lamp, or the like the part on which an upright work stands. It consists of three parts the base, the die or dado, and the cornice or surbase molding. See Illust. of {Column}. Build him a pedestal, and say ``Stand there!'' --Cowper. 2. a (Railroad Cars) A casting secured to the frame of a truck and forming a jaw for holding a journal box. b (Mach.) A pillow block; a low housing. c (Bridge Building) An iron socket, or support, for the foot of a brace at the end of a truss where it rests on a pier. {Pedestal coil} (steam Heating), a group of connected straight pipes arranged side by side and one above another, -- used in a radiator. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: pedestal n 1: a support or foundation; "the base of the lamp" [syn: {base}, {stand}] 2: a position of great esteem (and supposed superiority); "they put him on a pedestal" 3: an architectural support or base (as for a column or statue) [syn: {plinth}, {footstall}]
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