obelisk C2 Topic:General Vocabulary US /ˈɑbəlɪsk/ UK /ˈɒbəlɪsk/ See IPA manual Freq #29800 Meanings 1 noun a tall, four-sided stone pillar that tapers to a pyramidal point, often erected as a monument The ancient obelisk casts a narrow shadow across the square. 2 noun a dagger-shaped printing mark used to indicate a footnote, reference, or doubtful passage An obelisk beside the sentence directs readers to the translator's note. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · a tall, four-sided stone... monumentmonolith 2 noun · a dagger-shaped printing... daggerobelus Word family Derived forms obeliscalobelisklikeobeliskoid Related forms obelusmonolithpillarstele Etymology From Middle French obelisque, Latin obeliscus, and Greek obeliskos, a diminutive of obelos ("spit, pointed pillar"). The printing symbol was named for its pointed shape. Topics General Vocabulary External links Google Images Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary # obelisk **Type:** Word **Level:** C2 **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈɑbəlɪsk/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈɒbəlɪsk/ **Frequency rank:** 29800 ## Meanings 1. a tall, four-sided stone pillar that tapers to a pyramidal point, often erected as a monument 2. a dagger-shaped printing mark used to indicate a footnote, reference, or doubtful passage ## Examples - The ancient obelisk casts a narrow shadow across the square. - An obelisk beside the sentence directs readers to the translator's note. ## Synonyms - monument - monolith - dagger - obelus ## Derived Forms - obeliscal - obelisklike - obeliskoid ## Related Forms - obelus - monolith - pillar - stele ## Etymology From Middle French obelisque, Latin obeliscus, and Greek obeliskos, a diminutive of obelos ("spit, pointed pillar"). The printing symbol was named for its pointed shape. ## Topics - General Vocabulary markdown