Skip to main content
obeliscal

obeliscal

9.9
Having the shape of a tall thin stone column with a pointed top
  • adjective
: obelisco
  • The ancient monument had an obeliscal shape that pointed towards the sky.

Examples

  • The tall, obeliscal towers of the city were visible from miles away.

  • Her design for the new building featured an obeliscal layout that was both striking and unique.

  • The artist certainly sought the consolation of nature and religion, even while using images from contemporary science and waiting, as he put it somewhat ironically, for socialism to create a coherent, "obeliscal" society in the future.

    Academic text (1993)

Synonyms

pillar-shaped
vsobeliscal
1 3.9

Having a long, round, upright shape like a post

is noncylindrical, showing a vertical shape that is not round

Surface Forms

obeliscal positive

Morphology

obeliscal = obelisk (transparent) = obelisk + al

The adjective is formed regularly from the noun 'obelisk' with the suffix '-al' to mean 'relating to or resembling an obelisk'.

Etymology

Obeliscal comes from obelisk, which comes from the Greek obeliskos meaning 'a pointed stick' used as a small pillar. So, something obeliscal looks like a tall, thin, pointed column, which explains its modern meaning.