pulvino

English

Etymology

Italian pulvino, from Latin pulvīnus (“cushion, pillow, bolster”). Doublet of pillow, polverine, pulvinus, pulvillus, and pulvinulus, as well as others.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pʌlˈviːnəʊ/, /pəlˈviːnəʊ/
• Rhymes: -iːnəʊ
• Hyphenation: pul‧vi‧no

Noun

pulvino (plural pulvinos)

1. (architecture) A dosseret shaped like an inverted pyramid, placed between the column capital and the arch base.
2. (engineering) A structural element serving to distribute a load from a superimposed structure with higher mechanical resistance to a lower structure with lower resistance.

Italian

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin pulvīnus (“cushion, pillow, bolster”). By surface analysis, polvere (“dust, powder”) +‎ -ino. Compare pulviscolo.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pulˈvi.no/
• Rhymes: -ino
• Hyphenation: pul‧vì‧no

Noun

pulvino m (plural pulvini)

1. (architecture) pulvino, dosseret

Further reading

• “pulvino”, in Vocabolario Treccani on line (in Italian), Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana, 2026

Latin

Noun

pulvīnō

1. dative/ablative singular of pulvīnus