silo

1 of 2

noun

si·​lo ˈsī-(ˌ)lō How to pronounce silo (audio)
plural silos
1
: a trench, pit, or especially a tall cylinder (as of wood or concrete) usually sealed to exclude air and used for making and storing silage
2
a
: a deep bin for storing material (such as coal)
b
: an underground structure for housing a guided missile
These are weapons that can hit military targets, such as missile silos and headquarters, swiftly and accurately …Leslie H. Gelb
3
: an isolated grouping, department, etc., that functions apart from others especially in a way seen as hindering communication and cooperation
Big, complex companies are typically structured so that decision making is separated according to function, geography and product. That naturally creates silos.John H. Howard
Examples of silos in blue-chip firms abound: Sony once had two separate divisions working on creating the same electrical plug without anyone realizing it.Rana Foroohar
To break down silos individual officials need a stronger sense of belonging to a bigger whole, with norms and expectations spanning all departments and agencies.David Walker
Moorhouse came to the paper determined to break down its "silos"—MBA-speak for self-contained departments that don't have anything to do with other departments in a business.Mark Fitzgerald

Illustration of silo

Illustration of silo
  • silo 1

silo

2 of 2

verb

siloed; siloing; siloes

transitive verb

1
: to place or store (material, such as grain) in a silo
2
: to isolate (someone or something, such as a grouping or department) in a way that hinders communication and cooperation with others : to place (someone or something) in an isolated silo (see silo entry 1 sense 3)
One step banks can take to balance efforts, [Emmett] Higdon suggested, is to stop siloing mobile and online banking development efforts and channels.Nathan DiCamillo

Examples of silo in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Incentivize cross-team collaboration between IT, security and business units to break down silos and create a more unified approach to data protection. Ravi Ithal, Forbes, 9 Dec. 2024 His air force dropped these bombs wantonly, as a boy drops a firecracker down the silo of an anthill. Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 9 Dec. 2024
Verb
But even now, Ken admonishes himself for trying to silo da Vinci’s expertise into such restrictive disciplines. Hunter Ingram For Variety, ARTnews.com, 21 Nov. 2024 One of the most interesting choices made by Lisa and Ben was to silo the data gathered from customers at the organizer level. Eric Fuller, Forbes, 9 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for silo 

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Spanish

First Known Use

Noun

1856, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1981, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of silo was in 1856

Dictionary Entries Near silo

Cite this Entry

“Silo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/silo. Accessed 12 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

silo

noun
si·​lo ˈsī-lō How to pronounce silo (audio)
plural silos
1
: a trench, pit, or especially a tall cylinder (as of wood or concrete) used for making and storing silage
2
: an underground structure for housing a missile

More from Merriam-Webster on silo

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