flying buttress

noun

: a masonry structure that typically consists of a straight inclined bar carried on an arch and a solid pier or buttress against which it abuts and that receives the thrust of a roof or vault

Illustration of flying buttress

Illustration of flying buttress

Examples of flying buttress in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
That pinning point sustains pressure against the glacier’s interior, like a flying buttress pressing against the wall of a cathedral. Marissa Grunes, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 Jan. 2023 The shelf and the sheet help to stabilize each other, like a flying buttress and a cathedral arch. David W. Brown, The New Yorker, 21 Nov. 2022 Once upon a time, Americans really only used Madrid as a stopover, maybe spending one night en route to somewhere else—with a broadly recognizable skyline, iconic bridge, flying buttress or other totem easily conjured in the collective imagination. Christian L. Wright, WSJ, 29 Apr. 2022 The console takes a page from Corvette with a flying buttress separating driver from passenger — doubling as an Oh, Crap! Tribune News Service, cleveland, 5 Mar. 2022 See all Example Sentences for flying buttress 

Word History

First Known Use

1669, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of flying buttress was in 1669

Dictionary Entries Near flying buttress

Cite this Entry

“Flying buttress.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flying%20buttress. Accessed 9 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

flying buttress

noun
: an arched structure that extends beyond a wall or building and supports it

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