totem pole

noun

|Updated on: 24 Jul 2018

Definition of totem pole

1 : a pole or pillar carved and painted with a series of totemic symbols representing family lineage and often mythical or historical incidents and erected by Indian tribes of the northwest coast of North America

2 : an order of rank : hierarchy

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Recent Examples of totem pole from the Web

Artist Brian Jungen's pieces, towering totem poles fashioned from golf bags and a traditional Native mask made of Nike Air Jordan's, reflects the colliding experience of modern Native American people.

— yoshina okamoto, Anchorage Daily News, "Anchorage Museum’s ‘Unsettled’ is a sensory exploration of the ever-changing ‘Greater West’," 11 May 2018
As our antagonists spar over their place on the totem pole of privilege and oppression, Emilie gets in a good zinger about how many theater companies are run by gay white men.

— kerry lengel, azcentral, "Review: Nearly Naked Theatre's 'The Submission' is how NOT to add to the diversity debate," 3 July 2018
Of course, there are shoppers who still won’t get within a totem pole’s length of a Hawaiian shirt, Trefethen says.

— james sullivan, BostonGlobe.com, "Aloha to your father’s Hawaiian shirts," 28 June 2018
Meyers also notes that money mules are relatively low on the criminal totem pole.

— lily hay newman, WIRED, "Feds Bust Dozens of Email Scammers, but Your Inbox Still Isn’t Safe," 12 June 2018
But that one opinion can be just as wrong as that of the lowest person on the totem pole.

— david murphy, Philly.com, "Some thoughts on Kawhi Leonard, consensus, and the Sixers front office on the eve of the NBA Draft | David Murphy," 20 June 2018
This business is such that actors are absolutely the lowest on the totem pole and quite often are treated like props.

— nina metz, chicagotribune.com, "My worst moment: 'Chicago P.D.'s' Amy Morton recalls the job that required her to dress as a sea nymph," 12 June 2018
Margaret thrills to the uncertainty of the moment—and to the idea of being pushed from the top of the totem pole.

— julie miller, HWD, "The Crown: Vanessa Kirby Takes Us Inside Princess Margaret’s “Sexual Awakening”," 8 June 2018
Even people far down the Twitter totem pole have worked that out.

— felix salmon, WIRED, "Elon Musk and the Unnerving Influence of Twitter's Power Users," 5 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'totem pole.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Illustration of totem pole

First Known Use of totem pole

1880

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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TOTEM POLE Defined for English Language Learners

totem pole

noun

Definition of totem pole for English Language Learners

: a tall usually wooden pole that is carved and painted with symbols, figures, or masks which represent different Native American tribes
—used to describe someone's position or level in a company or organization