pentagon

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A flat shape with five straight sides and five angles.

   The pupils drew a pentagon in their geometry exercise.

2. 2
   name

   The headquarters of the US Department of Defense, or the department itself.

   The Pentagon announced new measures to strengthen security.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Pentagon, recorded in the late 16th century, comes from Greek penta, “five,” and gōnia, “angle,” and thus denotes a five-angled or five-sided figure. Its second element also appears in polygon and diagonal.

From Middle French pentagone, from Late Latin pentagōnum, from Ancient Greek πεντάγωνον (pentágōnon), noun use of the neuter of the adjective πεντάγωνος (pentágōnos, “five-angled”), from πέντε (pénte, “five”) + -γωνος (-gōnos, “angled”). Equivalent to penta- + -gon.

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External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary