# tower

Pronunciation: US say "TOW-ur" /ˈtaʊɚ/; UK say "TOW-uh" /ˈtaʊ.ə(ɹ)/

## Noun

1. A very tall building or structure, such as a skyscraper.
   - Simple: A very tall building or structure, like a skyscraper.
   - _Engineers spent five years constructing the tallest tower in the region._
   - _The glass tower reflected the sunset across the harbor._
2. A very tall iron-framed structure, usually painted red and white, on which microwave, radio, or satellite antennas are installed; a mast.
   - Simple: A tall metal structure that holds antennas for radio, TV, or phone signals.
   - _The radio tower blinked red against the night sky._
   - _Crews painted the communication tower in red and white bands for aircraft visibility._
4. Something, such as an upright computer case, whose height exceeds its width.
   - Simple: An object that stands taller than it is wide, like a computer case.
   - _She upgraded the graphics card inside her desktop tower._
   - _The server towers hummed quietly in the climate-controlled room._
5. The elevated structure at an airport from which controllers direct the movement of aircraft.
   - Simple: The tall building at an airport where workers guide planes safely.
   - _The pilot radioed the tower for landing clearance._
   - _Air traffic controllers in the tower tracked every approaching flight._
6. An elevated tank on a tall frame that stores water and keeps pressure steady in the pipes below.
   - Simple: A tall tank that holds water high up so it flows with good pressure.
   - _Engineers drained the tower to inspect its tank for corrosion._
   - _During the drought, the town's tower ran dangerously low._
7. A framed structure topped with a platform or enclosed cabin, used as a lookout for spotting fires, crashes, or fugitives.
   - Simple: A tall structure with a lookout on top, used to watch for fires or other danger.
   - _The ranger climbed the tower to scan the forest for smoke._
   - _A guard in the tower spotted the escaped prisoners near the fence._
9. In many tarot decks, the sixteenth trump card of the Major Arcana, generally taken as a bad omen.
   - Simple: A Tarot card, the sixteenth in the deck, often seen as a sign of bad luck.
   - _The Tower fell across his spread, hinting at an unavoidable crisis._
   - _Reversed, the Tower can soften into a warning rather than a disaster._
10. A strong place of refuge; a means of defense or protection.
   - Simple: A safe place that protects you from harm.
   - _Throughout the siege, the general remained a tower for his weary soldiers._
   - _Her grandmother had always been a tower against every misfortune._
11. A person or vehicle that tows something, hauling a load or disabled vehicle behind it. (pronounced: US say "TOH-ur" /ˈtoʊ.ɚ/; UK say "TOH-uh" /ˈtəʊ.ə(ɹ)/)
   - Simple: A person or thing that pulls something else along behind it.
   - _The harbor's busiest tower hauled three stranded yachts to shore before noon._
   - _Licensed towers must secure each load before pulling it onto the road._
12. A group of giraffes considered collectively.
   - Simple: A group of giraffes gathered together.
   - _The guide pointed out a tower of giraffes browsing among the acacias._
   - _Two separate towers drifted toward the same stretch of riverbank._
13. Each of a set of information technology concerns within a business, kept separate so that different providers can handle them.
   - Simple: A separate part of a company's IT work that one provider looks after on its own.
   - _The outsourcing deal split the firm's operations into five towers, each handled by its own vendor._
   - _Negotiators assigned the networking tower to a specialist supplier._
14. Ellipsis of interlocking tower. *(colloquial, US)* — Ellipsis of interlocking tower.
   - Simple: Short form of interlocking tower. People use this shorter word when talking about railway signals.
   - _The operator in the tower set the route for the incoming freight._
   - _An old brick tower still governed the switches where the two lines crossed._
15. Card number nineteen in the Lenormand deck, standing for structure, bureaucracy, stability, and loneliness.
   - Simple: A Lenormand fortune-telling card that stands for structure, rules, and loneliness.
   - _The tower fell beside the heart card, hinting at distance in a relationship._
   - _When the tower appears near the house, some readers see a sign of solid institutions._
16. A tall, fashionable headdress worn by women during the reigns of King William III and Queen Anne.
   - Simple: A tall, fancy headdress that fashionable women wore about three hundred years ago.
   - _Court portraits from the period show ladies in elaborate towers of starched lace._
   - _Her tower of ribbon and wire drew every eye at the assembly._
17. A metal stand used as a pivot to support a punty at the glassblowing furnace.
   - Simple: A metal stand at a furnace that holds and turns a glassmaker's rod.
   - _The gaffer balanced the punty on the tower while shaping the rim._
   - _A sturdy tower at the furnace let the artisan spin the glass evenly._

## Verb

3. To rise high above one's surroundings; to be very tall.
   - Simple: To rise very high above the things nearby.
   - _The cathedral spires tower over the medieval town._
   - _Skyscrapers towered above the narrow streets below._
8. To rise to a lofty height; to soar.
   - Simple: To reach or rise far up into the sky.
   - _Great cliffs tower over the crashing sea below._
   - _Her reputation towered above that of her rivals._

## Verb

18. To soar high upward into the open air or sky. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To rise and fly high up into the open sky.
   - _The trained falcon would tower the morning sky, then stoop on its prey._
   - _Larks towered the summer air until they were specks against the blue._

## Noun

19. The state of high flight; the great elevation reached in soaring. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: The act of flying high, or great height up in the air.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–2, 4–7, 9–10, 12–17, 19** — From Middle English tour (and tor, torr), from Old English tūr/torr ("tower; rock") and Old French tour, both from Latin turris ("a tower"), itself from Ancient Greek túrrhis/túrsis. It is a doublet of tor, tourelle, and turret.
**Meanings 3, 8, 18** — From Middle English touren, from Old English *torrian, which was formed from the noun (the tower sense above).
**Meaning 11** — Formed from the verb tow plus the suffix -er.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/tower (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).