dais

noun

da·​is ˈdā-əs 

nonstandard

ˈdī- 

: a raised platform (as in a hall or large room)

Mounting the dais which had been set up for his use, he swirled the sinister cloak about him and sat down in the Abbot's chair.

—Brian Jacques

Synonyms

• platform
• podium
• rostrum
• stage
• stand
• tribune

Examples of dais in a Sentence

the speaker took his place at the front of the dais

Recent Examples on the Web

The battlelines are drawn in the crowded, high-stakes San Jose District 3 City Council special election, with business and labor interests flooding the race with donations in what could become a crucial seat for control of the dais. —Devan Patel, Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2025

Image Exactly one month later, speaking from the same dais as the governor, Cory Swanson, the new chief justice of the Montana Supreme Court, pushed back — surprising many legislators. —Will Warasila, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2025

Shortly after Trump began, he was interrupted by Democratic Rep. Al Green of Texas, who was sitting only a few rows in front of the dais. —Nik Popli, TIME, 5 Mar. 2025

Johnson eyed the situation from his perch on the dais behind Trump, appearing hesitant to interrupt the president’s address. —Lisa Mascaro, Chicago Tribune, 5 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English deis, des "high table, elevated platform occupied by a court or council," borrowed from Anglo-French deis, dais (continental Old French deis "table of honor set up on a platform"), going back to Medieval Latin discus "raised table, platform," going back to Latin, "discus, kind of plate, gong," borrowed from Greek dískos "discus," in Late Greek also "dish, round mirror, the sun's disk, gong" — more at discus

Note: See note at dish entry 1. The predominant form in Middle French is dois, which should have resulted in Modern French [dwa]; the reason for the outcome dais [dɛ], with the presumed shift [dwɛ] to [dɛ], is in this, as in a number of parallel cases, unclear. As pointed out by the Oxford English Dictionary, first edition, the English word was, excepting Scots, out of use by 1600; the current word is an antiquarian revival, with the spelling presumably copying modern French.

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for dais

• ablaze
• airways
• allays
• always
• amaze
• anglaise
• appraise
• archways
• arrays
• ashtrays
• assays
• ballets

Kids Definition

dais

noun

da·​is ˈdā-əs 

: a raised platform (as in a large room)