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Webster 1913 Edition

Rostrum

Ros′trum

(-trŭm)
,
Noun.
;
pl. L.
Rostra
(#)
, E.
Rostrums
(#)
.
[L., beak, ship’s beak, fr.
rodere
,
rosum
, to gnaw. See
Rodent
.]
1.
The beak or head of a ship.
2.
pl.
(
Rostra
)
(Rom. Antiq.)
The Beaks; the stage or platform in the forum where orations, pleadings, funeral harangues, etc., were delivered; – so called because after the Latin war, it was adorned with the beaks of captured vessels; later, applied also to other platforms erected in Rome for the use of public orators.
3.
Hence, a stage for public speaking; the pulpit or platform occupied by an orator or public speaker.
Myself will mount the
rostrum
in his favor.
Addison.
4.
(Zool.)
(a)
Any beaklike prolongation, esp. of the head of an animal, as the beak of birds.
(b)
The beak, or sucking mouth parts, of Hemiptera.
(c)
The snout of a gastropod mollusk. See Illust. of
Littorina
.
(d)
The anterior, often spinelike, prolongation of the carapace of a crustacean, as in the lobster and the prawn.
5.
(Bot.)
Same as
Rostellum
.
6.
(Old Chem.)
The pipe to convey the distilling liquor into its receiver in the common alembic.
Quincy.
7.
(Surg.)
A pair of forceps of various kinds, having a beaklike form.
[Obs.]
Coxe.

Webster 1828 Edition

Rostrum

ROS'TRUM

,
Noun.
[L.]
1.
The beak or bill of a bird.
2.
The beak or head of a ship.
3.
In ancient Rome, a scaffold or elevated place in the forum, where orations, pleadings funeral harangues, &c., were delivered.
4.
The pipe which conveys the distilling liquor into its receiver, in the common alembic.
5.
A crooked pair of scissors, used by surgeons for dilating wounds.

Definition 2024

rostrum

rostrum

English

Noun

rostrum ‎(plural rostra or rostrums)

  1. A dais, pulpit, or similar platform for a speaker, conductor or other performer.
    • 1922, Sinclair Lewis, “27”, in Babbitt:
      He saw a crowd listening to a man who was talking from the rostrum of a kitchen-chair.
  2. A platform for a film or television camera.
  3. The projecting prow of a rowed warship, such as a trireme.
  4. (zoology) The beak.
  5. (zoology) The beak-shaped projection on the head of insects such as weevils.
  6. (zoology) The snout of a dolphin.
  7. (anatomy) The oral or nasal region of a human used for anatomical location (i.e. rostral)

Derived terms

Translations

Latin

Etymology

From rōd(ō) ‎(“to gnaw”) +‎ -trum, from Proto-Indo-European *reh₁d- + *-trom. Originally a bird's beak or animal's snout, but later extended to objects with a similar shape.

Pronunciation

  • (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈroːs.trum/, [ˈroːs.trũ]

Noun

rōstrum n ‎(genitive rōstrī); second declension

  1. bill or beak of a bird
  2. snout or muzzle of an animal
  3. (nautical) prow of a ship
  4. a stage or platform for speaking in the forum

Inflection

Second declension.

Case Singular Plural
nominative rōstrum rōstra
genitive rōstrī rōstrōrum
dative rōstrō rōstrīs
accusative rōstrum rōstra
ablative rōstrō rōstrīs
vocative rōstrum rōstra

Derived terms

Descendants

  • Portuguese: rosto
  • Romanian: rost
  • Spanish: rostro
  • Russian: ростр ‎(rostr), ростра ‎(rostra)

References

Etymology

From Latin rōstrum ‎(“beak, snout”), from rōd(ō) ‎(“gnaw”) + -trum, from Proto-Indo-European *reh₁d- + *-trom. The pulpit sense is a back-formation from the name of the Roman Rōstra, the platforms in the Forum where politicians made speeches. The Rōstra were decorated with (and named for) the beaks (prows) of ships from naval victories.

Pronunciation

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