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cairn



[ ˈkern]



cairn   
noun
[ˈkern]

Definition of cairn

: a heap of stones piled up as a memorial or as a landmark


Other Words from cairn
cairned \ ˈkernd \ adjective



Recent Examples on the Web


//The trail was marked with tall stone cairns, which flickered in and out of view, as low-lying clouds swept over us.
— Jake Halpern, New York Times, "A Chance to Bond on a Perilous Hiking Trail in Iceland," 21 Aug. 2019
//In 1859, another explorer, Francis McClintock, found a note left in a cairn dated to April 1848.
— Megan Gannon, Smithsonian, "Divers Get an Eerie First Look Inside the Arctic Shipwreck of the HMS Terror," 30 Aug. 2019
//Francis Crozier left it behind inside a stony cairn on King William Island before all the crew members perished.
— Meagan Flynn, Anchorage Daily News, "A doomed 1845 expedition to the Arctic killed 129 men. Now the ship’s artifacts have been found ‘frozen in time.’," 29 Aug. 2019
//In the millennia before that, cairns would indicate to prehistoric travelers that, yes, someone came this way before; keep going.
— Rick Jordan, Condé Nast Traveler, "Too Busy to Plan? These Local Guides Will Get You Up Close and Personal," 21 Aug. 2019
//Beyond the huge cairn, views of the San Francisco Peaks stand out on the northeast skyline.
— Mare Czinar, azcentral, "You'll probably have the summit to yourself on this shady summer hike," 7 June 2019
//The result is like a mash-up of a French pastry and an Israeli or Lebanese breakfast plate: deeply aromatic, a little savory, a case study in layers that all too quickly translates into a tiny cairn of golden flakes on your plate.
— Amy Scattergood, latimes.com, "Topped with za’atar and labneh, the latest croissant at Proof Bakery is a good one," 3 June 2019
//The cairn would be a series of granite river boulders, and with the aluminum butterfly would stand 12 feet tall.
— Lynn Horsley, kansascity, "JoCo public art project brings out everyone's inner critic. So will it fly? | The Kansas City Star," 4 May 2018
//The city has budgeted $100,000 for the cairn, or stack of rocks that form a trail marker, next to a caterpillar.
— Lynn Horsley, kansascity, "JoCo public art project brings out everyone's inner critic. So will it fly? | The Kansas City Star," 4 May 2018


First Known Use of cairn

15th century, in the meaning defined above



History and Etymology for cairn

Middle English (Scots) carne, from Scottish Gaelic carn; akin to Old Irish & Welsh carn cairn



Dictionary Entries near cairn

caïque

caiquejee

caird

cairn

Cairn's ash

cairngorm

Cairngorm Mountains



More Synonyms and Antonyms ofcairn

Synonyms of cairn

a small quantity of stones heaped together that usually marks a place
  • A cairn of loose stones marked the site.

Synonyms and Near Synonyms for cairn



More Definitions forcairn

cairn

noun

English Language Learners Definition of cairn

: a pile of stones that marks a place (such as the place where someone is buried or a battle took place) or that shows the direction of a trail