as in towers
a large, magnificent, or massive building
the company didn't want just a new office building—it demanded a cathedral that proclaimed its place among the giants of finance
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of cathedrals
Entry is free, and the interior is genuinely stunning — the kind of stop that rewards curiosity even if cathedrals aren’t typically your thing.
—
Lauren Schuster, Miami Herald, 10 Apr. 2026
On shrill winter nights, Moscow’s power is conspicuous, its Orthodox cathedrals and Stalinist high-rises illuminated, though the view falls dim in the autumn and spring, shrouded in sheets of greige.
—Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
In February, a large contingent of city residents made the short drive into Indianapolis to one of Indiana’s most revered basketball cathedrals, Hinkle Fieldhouse.
—Michael Marot, Chicago Tribune, 1 Apr. 2026
His high school gym was not the massive cathedrals built to serve the altars of Hoosier hysteria, but with 4,620 seats, the Greenfield Cougar Den is no slouch, either.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 30 Mar. 2026
The problem is those cathedrals couldn’t move.
—Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 29 Mar. 2026
Grain elevators rise like prairie cathedrals.
—Sponsored Content, Denver Post, 6 Mar. 2026
God appeared once, Christianity twice, and cathedrals, but not the Mother of Parliaments in London.
—Eliot A. Cohen, The Atlantic, 17 Feb. 2026
Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, capacity 100,077, is among college football's largest and most hallowed cathedrals.
—The Athletic Staff, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2026
Lauren Schuster, Miami Herald, 10 Apr. 2026
On shrill winter nights, Moscow’s power is conspicuous, its Orthodox cathedrals and Stalinist high-rises illuminated, though the view falls dim in the autumn and spring, shrouded in sheets of greige.
—Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
In February, a large contingent of city residents made the short drive into Indianapolis to one of Indiana’s most revered basketball cathedrals, Hinkle Fieldhouse.
—Michael Marot, Chicago Tribune, 1 Apr. 2026
His high school gym was not the massive cathedrals built to serve the altars of Hoosier hysteria, but with 4,620 seats, the Greenfield Cougar Den is no slouch, either.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 30 Mar. 2026
The problem is those cathedrals couldn’t move.
—Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 29 Mar. 2026
Grain elevators rise like prairie cathedrals.
—Sponsored Content, Denver Post, 6 Mar. 2026
God appeared once, Christianity twice, and cathedrals, but not the Mother of Parliaments in London.
—Eliot A. Cohen, The Atlantic, 17 Feb. 2026
Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, capacity 100,077, is among college football's largest and most hallowed cathedrals.
—The Athletic Staff, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cathedrals
Noun
-
Office renovations and conversions in Charlotte Post-COVID, office towers have to either entice people to come back to the cubicle or change uses.—
Caitlin McGlade,
Charlotte Observer,
27 Apr. 2026
-
The Box was established in 2007 in downtown LA, long before the rise of the glassy towers that now crowd the area.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Every corner of the island bears witness to physical remnants of the seven nations whose flags once crowned its edifices, giving visitors the impression of exploring a living history book still intact.—
Condé Nast Traveler,
Condé Nast Traveler,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Time captive within the grand edifices of the past, parading on the stage of memory.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Stays come in the form of historic palaces like Palazzu Nicrosi, perched on the hillside, or Le Couvent de Pozzo, a 15th-century convent converted into a guesthouse with a centerpiece pool eyeing the Italian island of Elba.—
Lane Nieset,
Travel + Leisure,
26 Apr. 2026
-
Though most monarchs live their entire lives in castles and palaces, the late queen was not born expecting to ascend to the throne.—
Elizabeth Stamp,
Architectural Digest,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
That includes clearing dead or dying vegetation within 100 feet of all structures, landscaping with fire-resistant plans and non-flammable ground cover, and disposing of landscaping debris in other ways.—
City News Service,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 Apr. 2026
-
The organism not only became active again but was also able to reproduce asexually, suggesting that its cellular structures remained intact despite the passage of millennia.—
Brittany Miller,
FOXNews.com,
25 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cathedrals.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cathedrals. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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