Meanings
plural monopteroi
- architectureA classical temple made up of one circle of columns supporting a roof.
I leafed through the various boxes and drawers, staring sometimes for minutes on end at a star-shaped vault or diamond frieze, a hermitage, a monopteros or a mausoleum, without knowing what I was looking at or why.
2001, WG Sebald, translated by Anthea Bell, Austerlitz, Penguin, published 2011, page 199
Origin
- Ancient Greekμονόπτερος
- Latinmonopteros
- Englishmonopteros
From Latin monopteros, from Ancient Greek μονόπτερος (monópteros), from μονο- (mono-, “mono-”) + πτερόν (pterón, “wing; circle of columns”).
More words from Latin, Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
monopteros. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/monopteros
“monopteros.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/monopteros. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “monopteros,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/monopteros.
Source: monopteros on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.