A Pillar of the Community Is a Load-Bearing Metaphor
A pillar is a vertical support. The figurative sense treats a person or principle as holding a structure up.
A pillar is a vertical support carrying weight. The figurative use is precise about function: a pillar of the community is someone the community leans on, and a pillar of a policy is a principle without which it collapses. The phrase *from pillar to post* has been used since the fifteenth century for being driven back and forth.
- A vertical support. *A stone pillar.*
- An essential principle. *A pillar of the strategy.*
- A respected person. *A pillar of the community.*
- From pillar to post — driven back and forth. *Sent from pillar to post.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | pillar | A marble pillar. |
| Plural | pillars | Four pillars. |
| Related | column | A fluted column. |
| Related | pilaster | A shallow pilaster. |
| Compound | pillar box | A red pillar box. |
How it is used in a sentence
- A pillar of the community.Someone relied upon.
- Sent from pillar to post.Passed around fruitlessly.
- A pillar box is a free-standing postbox.British.
Pillar and column
- Pillar — any vertical support, of any shape
- Column — usually a regular cylindrical form, often classical
- Pilaster — a shallow column attached to a wall
- Pier — a solid masonry support
- Buttress — an external support pressing against a wall
From Old French *piler*, from Medieval Latin *pilare*, from Latin *pila*, a pillar or pier.
Where does *from pillar to post* come from?
Its origin is disputed, with real tennis and the whipping post both proposed. The phrase is recorded from the fifteenth century.
Pillar or column?
Column usually implies a regular, often classical, cylindrical form. Pillar is the broader word for any vertical support.