pillars

noun

plural of pillar
1
as in pilasters
an upright shaft that supports an overhead structure the ancient Greek temple boasted graceful marble pillars with richly ornamented tops

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in anchors
something or someone to which one looks for support my father has been my pillar throughout this crisis

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of pillars Webb later revisited the region in infrared, seeing through more of the dust and revealing stars hidden inside and behind the pillars. — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 15 Aug. 2026 There’s a symmetry despite all four stands having a different design, ranging from the concrete pillars of the Bramall Lane end to the much smoother lines seen along the John Street Stand. — Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 13 Aug. 2026 Americans treat food, housing, and healthcare access as core pillars of health. — Tanya Akim, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026 With the two pillars of modernity merging into one, antisemitism, in its modern form, was also anti-bourgeois. — Literary Hub, 12 Aug. 2026 Serú Girán and Texas Tornados are probably the twin pillars, but beyond that? — Los Angeles Times, 11 Aug. 2026 The living space would be elevated on pillars with parking and storage underneath — a common design along the coast. — Adam Van Brimmer, AJC.com, 8 Aug. 2026 Musk pointed to each of the three business lines as part of the pillars of the company that will fuel what would have to be 10x growth in three or four years to hit his $1 trillion revenue projection. — Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 5 Aug. 2026 Communication has been one of their pillars since purchasing the inn, a Tudor-style home built in 1906. — Meredith Wilshere, PEOPLE, 2 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pillars
  1. pilasters
  2. anchors
  3. columns
  4. backbones
Noun
  • The small saints on side pilasters were sold off on the antiques market.
    — Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Even now, its fins and pilasters adorn plenty of new construction, and in real-estate-speak, the phrase is code for high class.
    — Justin Davidson, Curbed, 8 June 2026
Definition of pilasters
Noun
  • The new service aims to create new opportunities for subscribers to interact with MS NOW’s roster of reporters anchors and contributors.
    — Brian Steinberg, Variety, 19 Aug. 2026
  • An oversize half-moon couch anchors the living room, where a chic bar with see-through shelving separates the space from the formal dining room.
    — Tori Latham, Robb Report, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of anchors
Noun
  • Rather than the usual infotainment screen and a smattering of controls, this one has two columns of physical buttons with leather accents, and AC vents that echo the arrangement of the tailpipes out the back.
    — Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 13 Aug. 2026
  • This is part of a series of columns about young people and the economy.
    — Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of columns
Noun
  • More specifically, insects are invertebrates (animals without backbones) and are part of the arthropod phylum, which also includes spiders, crabs, and centipedes.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Look under rocks for macroinvertebrates (animals without backbones, like stoneflies).
    — Carl R. Gold, Baltimore Sun, 18 June 2026
Definition of backbones

Browse Nearby Words

pillar
pillars
pillbox
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pillars.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pillars. Accessed 21 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on pillars

Nglish: Translation of pillars for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of rigmarole

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

How to Pronounce the Trickiest Menu Items

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All