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pagoda

[ puh-goh-duh ]
/ pəˈgoʊ də /
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noun
in India, Myanmar (Burma), China, etc., a temple or sacred building, usually a pyramidlike tower and typically having upward-curving roofs over the individual stories.
any of several former gold or silver coins of southern India, usually bearing a figure of such a temple, first issued in the late 16th century and later also by British, French, and Dutch traders.
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Origin of pagoda

First recorded in 1625–35; from Portuguese pagode “temple,” ultimately from Persian butkada (but “idol” + kada “temple, dwelling”)

OTHER WORDS FROM pagoda

pa·go·da·like, adjectivesub·pa·go·da, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use pagoda in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pagoda

pagoda
/ (pəˈɡəʊdə) /

noun
an Indian or Far Eastern temple, esp a tower, usually pyramidal and having many storeys

Word Origin for pagoda

C17: from Portuguese pagode, ultimately from Sanskrit bhagavatī divine
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for pagoda

pagoda

A tower with several different stories, each of which has its own roof. Pagodas are common in eastern Asia and originally served religious purposes as memorials or shrines.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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