cupola

noun

cu·​po·​la ˈkyü-pə-lə How to pronounce cupola (audio)
1
a
: a rounded vault resting on a usually circular base and forming a roof or a ceiling
b
: a small structure built on top of a roof
2
: a vertical cylindrical furnace for melting iron in the foundry that has tuyeres and tapping spouts near the bottom
3
: a raised observation post in the roof of a railroad caboose
cupolaed adjective

Examples of cupola in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The view from the cupola, though, is said to be fantastic. Gary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Mar. 2024 The ossuary remained inaccessible from the late 16th century until the middle of the 20th, when the Church of San Pablo underwent a major renovation and cupolas were added to replace the original wooden roof. Franz Lidz Meghan Dhaliwal, New York Times, 23 Dec. 2023 The company foundation again donated $5 million in 2011, plus $1 million from its chief executive and his wife for CNU’s chapel, which opened in 2012 and features a marble entranceway, a 60-foot cupola and a main hall seating 325 people. Brandi Kellam, ProPublica, 22 Dec. 2023 Udaipur, India Udaipur’s striking architecture—marble palaces and grandiose buildings with distinctive cupola domes—earned it the nickname the White City. Jessica Puckett, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Nov. 2023 Beneath that grand cupola loomed a quartet of sculpted women, each embodying a region of France. Nina Caplan, Travel + Leisure, 7 Oct. 2023 One fragment of burning wood set St. Paul’s Church aflame, another the Cook County Courthouse, whose bell kept clanging, ominously, as fire destroyed the cupola that held it. Margaret Talbot, The New Yorker, 2 Oct. 2023 In 1883, the cupola was replaced after it was struck by lightning years earlier. Scott D. Pierce, The Salt Lake Tribune, 6 Sep. 2023 Per The Wall Street Journal, which first reported on the sale, the multi-seven-figure project encompassed raising the ceilings and exterior stone walls, adding a cupola, reconfiguring the floor plan and building an 1,800-square-foot addition onto the main house. Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 30 Aug. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cupola.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Italian, from Latin cupula, diminutive of cupa tub

First Known Use

1549, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of cupola was in 1549

Dictionary Entries Near cupola

Cite this Entry

“Cupola.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cupola. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

cupola

noun
cu·​po·​la ˈkyü-pə-lə How to pronounce cupola (audio)
1
: a rounded roof or ceiling : dome
2
: a small structure built on top of a roof

More from Merriam-Webster on cupola

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