silo
/ˈsaɪləʊ/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈsaɪləʊ/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈsī-(ˌ)lō/ (ame, mw) · /ˈsaɪ.ləʊ/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈsaɪ.loʊ/ (ame, ipa)
silo — noun
- silosingular
- silosplural
1. a tall, round building on a farm where grain or animal feed is stored for later
a tall, round building on a farm where grain or animal feed is stored for later use.
Theo helped his uncle fill the silo with corn after the harvest.
The old wooden silo stood next to the barn, painted bright red.
Farmers store enough grain in a silo to feed their animals through the winter.
A single silo on the Patterson farm held over a hundred tonnes of wheat.
Heavy rain damaged the roof of the silo, so the workers moved the grain quickly.
用法筆記
Common collocates include 'grain,' 'corn,' 'feed,' and 'store.' The physical shape (tall, round, above ground) distinguishes this from the military sense (sense 2), which is always underground.
常見錯誤
2. a large space built under the ground for storing and firing guided missiles or n
a large space built under the ground for storing and firing guided missiles or nuclear weapons.
The abandoned missile silo was hidden beneath a field in rural Nebraska.
Engineers inspected the concrete walls of the silo for cracks every month.
During the Cold War, both countries built hundreds of secret missile silos.
Dr. Amara Okafor led a tour of the decommissioned missile silo for the journalists.
- bunker
a broader term for any fortified underground shelter, not specifically for missiles
- launch facility
a more general term for any site where rockets or missiles are launched
用法筆記
Context (military, weapons) distinguishes this from the farming sense (sense 1). The structure is always underground and made of reinforced concrete. Most common in phrases like 'missile silo' or 'launch silo.'
常見錯誤
3. a department or team within an organization that works on its own and does not s
a department or team within an organization that works on its own and does not share information or ideas with other teams.
The marketing team worked in a silo and rarely shared data with product development.
work in a silo — common metaphorical phrase in business
Breaking down silos between departments helped the company launch products faster.
Each regional office operated as a silo, making company-wide changes very difficult.
The CEO wanted to remove the silo mentality between engineering and sales.
- compartment
suggests a separated section within a system, similar to an organisational silo
- bubble
a group that is cut off from outside information, used in both social and business contexts
- cross-functional team
a team that brings together people from different departments to collaborate
文法句型
work in a silo
operate in silos
用法筆記
Almost always a metaphorical usage. The literal farm or military senses do not apply. Common in fixed phrases: 'work in a silo,' 'silo mentality,' 'break down silos.' Often used in business and management contexts.
常見錯誤
silo — verb
- silopresent simple I / you / we / they
- silos3rd person singular
- siloing-ing form
- siloedpast simple
1. to keep a person, group, or department apart from others within an organization,
to keep a person, group, or department apart from others within an organization, limiting communication and cooperation between them.
The new manager decided to silo the design team, which slowed down production.
When companies silo their customer support staff, problems take longer to solve.
silo + [department/staff] as transitive verb pattern
The restructuring plan would silo each division, making collaboration nearly impossible.
Rather than siloing the researchers, the lab encouraged open exchange between all teams.
- isolate
more general term; silo specifically implies organisational separation that blocks cooperation
- compartmentalize
suggests dividing into separate sections, often deliberately
- integrate
to bring separate groups together so they work as a whole
文法句型
silo + noun phrase (person/group/department)
用法筆記
A back-formation from the organisational sense (noun sense 3). Almost exclusively used in business contexts. Frequently appears in passive form: 'be/get siloed.' The object must be a person, group, or department — not a physical object or document.