plinth

n.

1. A block or slab on which a pedestal, column, or statue is placed.
2. The base block at the intersection of the baseboard and the vertical trim around an opening.
3. A continuous course of stones supporting a wall. Also called plinth course.
4. A square base, as for a vase.

[French plinthe, from Latin plinthus, from Greek plinthos, tile, plinth.]

Readers became curious about the word plinth — it's a base upon which a pedestal, statue or vase rests — because of the creation of a very futuristic piece of furniture:

"A young Dutch architect has created a floating bed which hovers above the ground through magnetic force and comes with a price tag of 1.2 million euros ($1.54 million).
"Janjaap Ruijssenaars took inspiration for the bed -- a sleek black platform, which took six years to develop and can double as a dining table or a plinth -- from the mysterious monolith in Stanley Kubrick's 1968 cult film '2001: A Space Odyssey.'"

Link: Designer creates floating bed - Yahoo! News

Posted August 9, 2006.

See our Word Overheard blog to see interesting uses of strange words.

1. A square or rectangular base for column, pilaster, or door framing.
2. A solid monumental base, often ornamented with moldings, bas reliefs, or inscriptions, to support a statue or memorial.
3. A recognizable base of an external wall, or the base courses of a building collectively, if so treated as to give the appearance of a platform.

plinth, 1

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[Co]

Projecting course at the foot of a wall or the stone base of an altar or similar ornamental or ceremonial structure.

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - plint, sokkel

Nederlands (Dutch)
voetstuk, sokkel, basis van een kolom

Français (French)
n. - (Archit) plinthe, socle

Deutsch (German)
n. - Sockel

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (αρχιτ.) πλίνθος, πλιθί

Italiano (Italian)
piedistallo, base, plinto

Português (Portuguese)
n. - plinto (m)

Русский (Russian)
цоколь, постамент, плинтус

Español (Spanish)
n. - plinto

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - plint, sockel

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
柱基, 方形底座

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 柱基, 方形底座

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 토대, (원기둥의) 방형대화

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 柱礎, 幅木

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) قاعدة مربعه يرتكز عليها العمود أو التمثال‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮בסיס-עמוד, אדן, בסיס לפסל או לאגרטל‬

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