Main Entry:

col·umn

Pronunciation:

\ˈkä-ləm also ˈkäl-yəm\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

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

Date:

15th century

1 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>2: a supporting pillar ; especially : one consisting of a usually round shaft, a capital, and a base3 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 place4: a long row (as of soldiers)5: one of the vertical lines of elements of a determinant or matrix6: a statistical category or grouping <put another game in the win column>

— col·umned \-ləmd, -yəmd\ adjective

[column illustration]