Pil"lar (?), n. [OE. pilerF.
pilier, LL. pilare, pilarium, pilarius,
fr. L. pila a pillar. See Pile a heap.]
1. The general and popular term for a firm,
upright, insulated support for a superstructure; a pier, column, or
post; also, a column or shaft not supporting a superstructure, as one
erected for a monument or an ornament.
Jacob set a pillar upon her grave.
Gen. xxxv. 20.
The place . . . vast and proud,
Supported by a hundred pillars stood.
Dryden.
2. Figuratively, that which resembles such a
pillar in appearance, character, or office; a supporter or mainstay;
as, the Pillars of Hercules; a pillar of the
state. "You are a well-deserving pillar."
Shak.
By day a cloud, by night a pillar of
fire.
Milton.
3. (R. C. Ch.) A portable ornamental
column, formerly carried before a cardinal, as emblematic of his
support to the church. [Obs.] Skelton.
4. (Man.) The center of the volta,
ring, or manege ground, around which a horse turns.
From pillar to post, hither and thither; to
and fro; from one place or predicament to another; backward and
forward. [Colloq.] -- Pillar saint. See
Stylite. -- Pillars of the fauces.
See Fauces, 1.
Pil"lar, a. (Mach.) Having a
support in the form of a pillar, instead of legs; as, a pillar
drill.