gargoyle
591
9.1
- noun
- /ˈɡɑrɡɔɪl/
:
gárgola
- The ancient cathedral featured a series of intricate gargoyles that served as decorative water spouts.
- a stone gargoyle
- carve a gargoyle
- a grotesque gargoyle
But as you're crouched like a gargoyle either in or above the toilet, imagine OK in the toilet.
- But as you're crouched like a gargoyle either in or above the toilet, imagine OK in the toilet.
Examples
-
"I'm looking for a gargoyle," he said, nervously stroking his stone hand.
Fiction book (1995) -
Across the courtyard, he observed a row of gargoyles glowering and grinning; they reminded him of Adolphe Staemphli.
Fiction book (1992) -
What the well-dressed gargoyle will wear.
-
And what, may we ask... is the purpose of that hideous gargoyle?
-
I think he used to be a gargoyle on the south side of Notre Dame.
-
The settle has carved gargoyles on its arms.
-
Tall, foreboding towers, lined with menacing gargoyles, pierce the night sky.
Fiction book (1990) -
Two enormous wooden doors, covered with intricate carvings of demons, serpents, and gargoyles, adorn the castle entrance.
Fiction book (1990) -
Tourists gathered to admire the detailed gargoyles perched high on the building's Gothic structure.
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Each gargoyle was sculpted to display a unique and grotesque expression, adding character to the cathedral.
Synonyms
2
8.1
A strange decorative design that mixes human, animal, and plant shapes
1
9.9
A stone figure on a building or a person who looks ugly
Idioms
Surface Forms
Etymology
Gargoyle comes from the old French word gargouille, which means 'throat' and is like the English word gargle. A gargoyle was a carved stone figure that often acted as a water 'spout', so the name helps you remember it as a creature that sends water away from a building.