plinth

noun

ˈplin(t)th 

1

a

: the lowest member of a base : subbase

b

: a block upon which the moldings of an architrave or trim are stopped at the bottom

2

: a usually square block serving as a base

broadly : any of various bases or lower parts

3

: a course of stones forming a continuous foundation or base course

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Plinth and Architecture

"These ivy-clad arcades — / These mouldering plinths ... are they all — / All of the famed, and the colossal left…?" In these lines from "The Coliseum," Edgar Allan Poe alludes to a practical feature of classical architecture. The plinth serves the important purpose of raising the base of the column it supports above the ground, thus protecting it from dampness and mold. The humble plinth is usually a mere thick block. It's humbly named, too, for the Greek word plinthos means simply "tile" or "brick." English writers have used plinth, a shortened version of the Latin form plinthus, since the mid-16th century. The word's meaning was later extended to bases for statues, vases, or busts.

Examples of plinth in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The plaque was pried off a large plinth about a year after it was installed, according to police. —Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2024

Holland would enlist artisan Jade Pinnell to produce a glass plinth for the book to rest upon within its birdcage, crafted by Dom Parish. —Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 4 Apr. 2024

The porcelain tableware and water vessel, as well as a vase set on a nearby plinth, were made by the ceramist Elsa Brunet, whose pottery classes in Saint-Germain Lee Vasquez has taken for the past two years. —Alice Cavanagh, New York Times, 22 Mar. 2024

Paunch, who has become less timid, has a proclivity to stop and nose out every possible tree trunk, lamppost, and plinth before gracing it with a tag of his urine. —Sierra Greer, WIRED, 19 Mar. 2024

The delicate structure sits atop a cast glass plinth created by glassmaker Jade Pinnell. —Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 12 Mar. 2024

As the demonstration swelled, one man got up onto the plinth where a 9-ton marble statue of King Louis XVI had stood since the 1960's. —Roberto Roldan, NPR, 1 Mar. 2024

Manhattan Beach police are asking for the public’s help in locating the nearly year-old plaque from Bruce’s Beach that was stolen this week — stripped from its large plinth. —Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 31 Jan. 2024

The Sapphire is well-appointed beyond its streaming skills, including the same Ortofon 2M Blue stylus cartridge found in some of our favorite turntables, a low-resonance MDF plinth, and a carbon-fiber tonearm. —Condé Nast, WIRED, 9 Jan. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin plinthus, from Greek plinthos

First Known Use

1563, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

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Kids Definition

plinth

noun

ˈplin(t)th 

1

: the lowest part of the base of an architectural column

2

: a block used as a base (as for a vase)