Palladian
adj, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 An architect who designs buildings in the Palladian style.
"What is quite certain that Georgian Palladianism without him [Colen Campbell] would have developed later and would have been quite different, and the legacy of the English Palladians, accepted but rarely acknowledged by their most adventurous but no more dedicated successors, would have been less rich."
- 2 A building or an architectural element (for example, a window) designed in the Palladian style.
"Anything [i.e., any type of window] with a rounded top became known as a Palladian and was seen as an instant evocation of history, status, class, and tradition. In some cases, an oversized Palladian filled an entire facade of a house."
- 1 Of or relating to Pallas, an epithet of Athena, the goddess of wisdom, and potentially to other female Greek figures such as Pallas the daughter of Triton and granddaughter of Poseidon. Greek, not-comparable, rare
"[I]f in this the moſt conſummat act of his fidelity and ripeneſſe, no years, no induſtry, no former proof of his abilities can bring him to that ſtate of maturity, as not to be ſtill miſtruſted and ſuſpected, unleſſe he carry all his conſiderat diligence, all his midnight watchings, and expence of Palladian oyl, to the haſty view of an unleaſur'd licencer, perhaps much his younger, perhaps far his inferiour in judgement, [...]"
- 2 In the style of the Italian neoclassical architect Andrea Palladio. not-comparable
"You ſhow us, Rome was glorious, not profuſe, / And pompous Buildings once were things of uſe. / Yet ſhall (my Lord) your juſt, your noble Rules / Fill half the land with Imitating Fools: / […] / Conſcious they act a true Palladian part, / And if they ſtarve, they ſtarve by the Rules of Art."
- 3 Containing tetravalent palladium. not-comparable
- 4 Of or relating to knowledge, study, or wisdom. broadly, not-comparable, rare
- 5 of or pertaining to the asteroid Pallas not-comparable
"the object 3200 Phaethon, which is thought to be a Palladian asteroid"
- 1 referring to or relating to or having the style of architecture created by Andrea Palladio wordnet
Example
More examples"[I]f in this the moſt conſummat act of his fidelity and ripeneſſe, no years, no induſtry, no former proof of his abilities can bring him to that ſtate of maturity, as not to be ſtill miſtruſted and ſuſpected, unleſſe he carry all his conſiderat diligence, all his midnight watchings, and expence of Palladian oyl, to the haſty view of an unleaſur'd licencer, perhaps much his younger, perhaps far his inferiour in judgement, [...]"
Etymology
From Latin Palladius (“of or relating to Pallas”) + -an (suffix forming adjectives from nouns). Palladius is derived from Pallas (from Ancient Greek Παλλάς (Pallás), genitive Παλλάδος (Palládos), an epithet of Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom) + -ius (suffix forming adjectives from nouns).
From Italian Palladio, the surname of Andrea Palladio (1508–1580) + -an (suffix forming adjectives from nouns).
From palladium + -ian.
Related phrases
More for "palladian"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.