n.
Pronunciation: ' pi-l ə r
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English piler, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin pilare, from Latin pila
Date: 13th century
1 a : a firm upright support for a superstructure : POST b : a usually ornamental column or shaft especially : one standing alone for a monument
2 a : a supporting, integral, or upstanding member or part <a pillar of society> b : a fundamental precept <the five pillar s of Islam>
3 : a solid mass of coal, rock, or ore left standing to support a mine roof
4 : a body part that resembles a column
– pil · lar · less adjective
– from pillar to post : from one place or one predicament to another