as in pile
a small quantity of stones heaped together that usually marks a place
A cairn of loose stones marked the site.
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Recent Examples of cairn
Young Hopi men traditionally descended the rugged Salt Trail to the Little Colorado and Sípàapuni, contributing rocks to a cairn that still stands along the route and gathering salt to bring home.
—
Brandon Loomis, AZCentral.com, 15 Dec. 2025
Adam picked up a stone to top off each cairn.
—Stephanie Danler, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Nov. 2025
Found around the perimeter ring, there are six additional cairns.
—Mike Bezemek, Outside, 29 Oct. 2025
Stone cairns, serpentine walls, earthen mounds, balance rocks, ancient spring wells, and interesting stone enclosures have been identified as potential early cultural evidence of pre-European native use.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 3 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for cairn
Brandon Loomis, AZCentral.com, 15 Dec. 2025
Adam picked up a stone to top off each cairn.
—Stephanie Danler, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Nov. 2025
Found around the perimeter ring, there are six additional cairns.
—Mike Bezemek, Outside, 29 Oct. 2025
Stone cairns, serpentine walls, earthen mounds, balance rocks, ancient spring wells, and interesting stone enclosures have been identified as potential early cultural evidence of pre-European native use.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 3 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for cairn
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cairn
Noun
-
Among them is the demanding task of turning a pile of artifacts into a museum collection, which includes cataloging, researching, describing and photographing.—
Denise Crosby,
Chicago Tribune,
19 Apr. 2026
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That was the nine-runner pile-up in the 800 that derailed what was developing into a world-class race at the end of an afternoon full of them.—
Scott M. Reid,
Oc Register,
19 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Junior right-hander Jowell Colon has been itching to get a start on the mound for Jacobs.—
Paul Johnson,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Apr. 2026
-
Paul Skenes will be on the mound for the Pirates on Saturday for the team's first bobblehead giveaway game of the season.—
Mike Darnay,
CBS News,
17 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The proceeds will also accelerate Samsung SDS’s investments in AI infrastructure and strengthen its expansion as a full-stack AI solutions provider.—
Dylan Butts,
CNBC,
15 Apr. 2026
-
But very close to the north pole itself, a stack of features arose that were entirely unexpected.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
15 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Tree planting remained an important component, but the vision became broader, with more focus on cultivating arid, degraded land - like the mountains around Kourtimale or the Ferlo valley.—
Julie Bourdin,
NPR,
11 Apr. 2026
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Then commandos used mini-helicopters to reach the mountains, extract the weapons officer, and fly him back to the airfield.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
11 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cairn.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cairn. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
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