scaffold

noun

scaf·​fold ˈska-fəld 

 also  -ˌfōld

1

a

: a temporary or movable platform for workers (such as bricklayers, painters, or miners) to stand or sit on when working at a height above the floor or ground

b

: a platform on which a criminal is executed (as by hanging or beheading)

c

: a platform at a height above ground or floor level

2

: a supporting framework

Examples of scaffold in a Sentence

The condemned man was led to the scaffold.

Recent Examples on the Web

The lowest branch should stand around 18 inches above the ground, with about 6 inches in height between subsequent scaffold branches. —Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 4 Sep. 2024

The flavor compound, which consists of a flavor group and two binding groups, stays in the scaffold until heated. —Lex Harvey, CNN, 9 July 2024

Another man who was working on a scaffold, like Pineda Hernandez, also was thrown by the explosion, according to his lawsuit. —Madeleine O'Neill, Baltimore Sun, 20 June 2024

Lawrence and Hall suspect that lncRNAs could supply scaffolds for organizing other molecules, for example, by holding some of the many hundreds of RNA-binding proteins in functional assemblies. —Philip Ball, Scientific American, 14 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French scaffald, alteration of Old French eschaafauz, escafaut, alteration of chaafaut, from Vulgar Latin *catafalicum — more at catafalque

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

scaffold

noun

scaf·​fold ˈskaf-əld 

 also  -ˌōld

1

a

: an elevated platform built as a support for workers

b

: a platform on which a criminal is executed

2

: a supporting framework