Illustration of pylon
- pylon 1b
1
a
: a usually massive gateway
b
: an ancient Egyptian gateway building in a truncated pyramidal form
c
: a monumental mass flanking an entranceway or an approach to a bridge
2
a
chiefly British
: a tower for supporting either end of usually a number of wires over a long span
b
: any of various towerlike structures
3
a
: a post or tower marking a prescribed course of flight for an airplane
b
c
: one of the flexible upright markers positioned on a football field at the corners of the end zone
4
: a rigid structure on the outside of an aircraft for supporting something (such as an engine or missile) see airplane illustration
Examples of pylon in a Sentence
The bridge is supported by concrete pylons.
a row of electricity pylons
Recent Examples on the Web
About an hour from the Holland Tunnel, take a right off Route 130 after the Dunkin’, file into a stadium-size parking lot, and, just past the electric pylon, a mirage appears: a bronze statue of a skinny yogi and, beyond it, swirls of stone fluffed up into meringue peaks.
—
Justin Davidson, Curbed, 9 Nov. 2023
Residents say the meetings were unsatisfactory because the company presented the pylons as a fait accompli.
—Stanley Reed, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2023
Advertisement After Williams raced to the end zone and swept the ball past the inside edge of the pylon, the quarterback skipped toward the uprights, planted both feet on the ground and mimicked putting a crown on his head.
—Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2023
Hufanga stopped Conner just short of the pylon and flexed in his face afterward.
—Ryan Gaydos, Fox News, 2 Oct. 2023
After initially being called a touchdown, Thorne’s dive at the pylon was reviewed and it the call was overturned, instead giving Auburn a first down from the 1-yard line.
—Ainslie Lee | Alee@al.com, al, 16 Sep. 2023
The deadly crash sparked civil lawsuits, investigations by federal aviation officials and safety enhancements at the air races, such as moving racing pylons 150 feet farther from grandstands and installing concrete barriers.
—Matt Hamilton, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2023
Its introduction comes as Jets quarterbacks and Hackett play the pylon game.
—Jim Reineking, USA TODAY, 9 Aug. 2023
The lifts there closed for the final time at the end of the 2013–14 season, and the skeletal pylons still strewn across the hillside have long since turned to rust.
—WIRED, 18 Sep. 2023
See More
Justin Davidson, Curbed, 9 Nov. 2023
Residents say the meetings were unsatisfactory because the company presented the pylons as a fait accompli.
—Stanley Reed, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2023
Advertisement After Williams raced to the end zone and swept the ball past the inside edge of the pylon, the quarterback skipped toward the uprights, planted both feet on the ground and mimicked putting a crown on his head.
—Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2023
Hufanga stopped Conner just short of the pylon and flexed in his face afterward.
—Ryan Gaydos, Fox News, 2 Oct. 2023
After initially being called a touchdown, Thorne’s dive at the pylon was reviewed and it the call was overturned, instead giving Auburn a first down from the 1-yard line.
—Ainslie Lee | Alee@al.com, al, 16 Sep. 2023
The deadly crash sparked civil lawsuits, investigations by federal aviation officials and safety enhancements at the air races, such as moving racing pylons 150 feet farther from grandstands and installing concrete barriers.
—Matt Hamilton, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2023
Its introduction comes as Jets quarterbacks and Hackett play the pylon game.
—Jim Reineking, USA TODAY, 9 Aug. 2023
The lifts there closed for the final time at the end of the 2013–14 season, and the skeletal pylons still strewn across the hillside have long since turned to rust.
—WIRED, 18 Sep. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pylon.' 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
Greek pylōn, from pylē gate
First Known Use
1817, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Dictionary Entries Near pylon
Cite this Entry
“Pylon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pylon. Accessed 4 Dec. 2023.
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Kids Definition
pylon
noun
py·lon
ˈpī-ˌlän 
-lən
1
: a tower for supporting a long span of wire
also
: any of various structures like a tower
2
: a post or tower marking a prescribed course of flight for an airplane
More from Merriam-Webster on pylon
Nglish: Translation of pylon for Spanish Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about pylon
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