pendant

noun

pen·​dant ˈpen-dənt 

senses 3 & 4 are also

ˈpe-nənt 

sense 5 is also

päⁿ-ˈdäⁿ 

variants or less commonly pendent

1

: something suspended: such as

a

: an ornament (as on a necklace) allowed to hang free

A turquoise pendant hung on her necklace.

b

: an electrical fixture suspended from the ceiling

hung an incandescent light pendant from the ceiling over the reading area

2

: a hanging ornament of roofs or ceilings much used in the later styles of Gothic architecture

3

: a length of line usually used as a connector on a boat or ship

especially : a short rope hanging from a spar and having at its free end a block or spliced thimble (see thimble sense 2a)

4

chiefly British : pennant sense 1a

5

a

: companion piece

The portrait of his father is a pendant to the one of his mother.

b

: something secondary or supplementary

The illustration is an apt pendant to the poem.

Did you know?

Most pendants are purely decorative. But a pendant may also hold a picture or a lock of hair of a lover or a child. And, perhaps because they hang protectively in front of the body and near the heart, pendants have often had symbolic and magical purposes. Thus, a pendant may be a charm or amulet, or its gems or metals may be felt to have health-giving properties. In architecture, a pendant is an ornament that hangs down from a structure, but unlike a necklace pendant it's usually solid and inflexible.

Synonyms

• bangle
• charm
• lavaliere
• lavalliere

Examples of pendant in a Sentence

Navajo necklaces with pendants finely crafted in genuine sky-blue turquoise.

a pendant that once flew on Nelson's flagship

Recent Examples on the Web

An Italian brass and opaline pendant from the 1940s hangs above a Swedish pine trestle table from the late 18th century. —Sydney Gore, Architectural Digest, 6 Dec. 2024

Here's a beautiful necklace which features a coin-size pendant engraved with tiny twinkling crystals shaped to reflect the constellation for her astrological sign. —Shanna Shipin, Glamour, 2 Dec. 2024

Discovered in Anatolia, a region in modern-day Turkey, the two-sided pendant features inscriptions in ancient Greek. —Julia Binswanger, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Nov. 2024

Flavor Flav Flavor Flav has become known for his flamboyant clock chain necklace, which features an enlarged clock pendant. —Edward Segarra, USA TODAY, 26 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English pendaunt, from Anglo-French pendant, from present participle of pendre to hang, from Vulgar Latin *pendere, from Latin pendēre; akin to Latin pendere to weigh, estimate, pay, pondus weight

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

pendant

noun

pen·​dant

variants also pendent

ˈpen-dənt 

: something that hangs down especially as an ornament