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
Most remarkable is the cairn-tomb of Gavrinis, one of Europe's great repositories of megalithic art, its interior replete with swirling patterns carved into the rock some 6,000 years ago.
—
The Week Uk, theweek, 12 Oct. 2024
The bones excavated at the site were returned to King William Island in 1994 and interred in a memorial cairn.
—Katie Hunt, CNN, 11 Oct. 2024
Ranger died in 1940 and was buried at the summit of Mount Hood, which is marked by a stone cairn and an engraved plaque.
—Meira Gebel, Axios, 20 Sep. 2024
The trail can be confusing so keep an eye open for cairns and tree notches serving as trail markers.
—Roger Naylor, The Arizona Republic, 18 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for cairn
The Week Uk, theweek, 12 Oct. 2024
The bones excavated at the site were returned to King William Island in 1994 and interred in a memorial cairn.
—Katie Hunt, CNN, 11 Oct. 2024
Ranger died in 1940 and was buried at the summit of Mount Hood, which is marked by a stone cairn and an engraved plaque.
—Meira Gebel, Axios, 20 Sep. 2024
The trail can be confusing so keep an eye open for cairns and tree notches serving as trail markers.
—Roger Naylor, The Arizona Republic, 18 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for cairn
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cairn
Noun
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For a vacuum that’s quiet in operation and capable of tackling messes on hard floors and medium-pile carpets, this is a great pick.—
Nashia Baker,
Architectural Digest,
5 Nov. 2025
-
There’s a size limit for leaf piles, according to the city of Sacramento.—
Sarah Linn
November 5,
Sacbee.com,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Wong opts for a Belgian-style waffle, with deep cups ready to absorb the golf-ball-sized mound of sambal-honey butter on top.—
Alana Al-Hatlani,
Southern Living,
25 Oct. 2025
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The score was just 2-2 at the start of the inning, and Dodgers' two-time Cy Young award winner Blake Snell was on the mound.—
Gabe Smallson,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Helm topples trees, uproots crops, overturns feed stacks, steals loose blankets.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Nov. 2025
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Its chief investment vehicle is Humain, a homegrown company that is building out a full stack of data centers, cloud capabilities, large language models and applications.—
Tala Alrajjal,
CNN Money,
2 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Weather has been deteriorating since last week in Nepal, with snowstorms reported on the mountains, the Associated Press reported.—
Helen Regan,
CNN Money,
3 Nov. 2025
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Yonah Mountain Vineyards also pays homage to the iconic mountain by emblazoning its wine bottles and glasses with a bear symbol.—
Crystal Tate,
USA Today,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cairn.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cairn. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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