ob·e·lisk
(ŏb′ə-lĭsk)n.1. A tall, four-sided shaft of stone, usually tapered and monolithic, that rises to a pointed pyramidal top.
2. The dagger sign (†), used especially as a reference mark. Also called dagger, obelus.
[Latin obeliscus, from Greek obeliskos, diminutive of obelos, a spit, obelisk.]
ob′e·lis′cal (-lĭs′kəl) adj.
ob′e·lis′koid′ (-koid′) adj.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.