steeple

IPA/ˈstiːpl/
KK[stˈipəl]IPA/ˈstiːpl/

steeple — noun

  • steeplesingular
  • steeplesplural

1. the tall part of a church building formed by the tower and its pointed top toget

1.nounB2
Definition

the tall part of a church building formed by the tower and its pointed top together.

Example

From the farm road, Omar could see the white steeple above the trees.

landmark use: see the steeple above the trees

Workers climbed the church steeple to replace the metal cross before winter.

pattern: climb the church steeple

Common collocations
  • church steeple
  • white steeple
  • stone steeple
  • climb the steeple
  • repair the steeple
  • steeple bell
Synonyms
  • spire

    means only the pointed top, not the tower below it

  • bell tower

    focuses on the tower that holds bells and may not have a pointed top

  • tower

    a broader word for any tall structure, religious or not

Grammar Patterns

a/an + steeple

the + steeple

Usage Note

Usually refers to a church structure as a whole. If you mean only the narrow pointed top, spire is the more exact word.

Common Mistakes

The steeple is only the sharp point on the church.
The steeple is the church tower together with its pointed top.
if you mean just the pointed top, use 'spire'.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Steeple is the most church-specific of these words. It usually means the church tower together with the pointed top, treated as one visible structure. Spire is narrower: it names only the pointed part that rises from a roof or tower. A bell tower focuses on function, not shape, because it is the tower where bells hang and it may be flat-topped. Tower is the broad everyday word for any tall structure, whether it belongs to a church, castle, or office building. In a village scene, you might notice the church steeple from far away; in an architectural description, you may need to say that workers repaired the spire rather than the whole tower.

steeple ↗spire ↗bell tower ↗tower ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • church steeple
  • steeple bell
  • repair the steeple

Prepositions