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From pillar to post   /frəm pˈɪlər tu poʊst/   Listen
noun
Pillar  n.  
1.
The general and popular term for a firm, upright, insulated support for a superstructure; a pier, column, or post; also, a column or shaft not supporting a superstructure, as one erected for a monument or an ornament. "Jacob set a pillar upon her grave." "The place... vast and proud, Supported by a hundred pillars stood."
2.
Figuratively, that which resembles such a pillar in appearance, character, or office; a supporter or mainstay; as, the Pillars of Hercules; a pillar of the state. "You are a well-deserving pillar." "By day a cloud, by night a pillar of fire."
3.
(R. C. Ch.) A portable ornamental column, formerly carried before a cardinal, as emblematic of his support to the church. (Obs.)
4.
(Man.) The center of the volta, ring, or manege ground, around which a horse turns.
From pillar to post, hither and thither; to and fro; from one place or predicament to another; backward and forward. (Colloq.)
Pillar saint. See Stylite.
Pillars of the fauces. See Fauces, 1.


Post  n.  
1.
A piece of timber, metal, or other solid substance, fixed, or to be fixed, firmly in an upright position, especially when intended as a stay or support to something else; a pillar; as, a hitching post; a fence post; the posts of a house. "They shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper doorpost of the houses." "Then by main force pulled up, and on his shoulders bore, The gates of Azza, post and massy bar." "Unto his order he was a noble post." Note: Post, in the sense of an upright timber or strut, is used in composition, in such words as king-post, queen-post, crown-post, gatepost, etc.
2.
The doorpost of a victualer's shop or inn, on which were chalked the scores of customers; hence, a score; a debt. (Obs.) "When God sends coin I will discharge your post."
From pillar to post. See under Pillar.
Knight of the post. See under Knight.
Post hanger (Mach.), a bearing for a revolving shaft, adapted to be fastened to a post.
Post hole, a hole in the ground to set the foot of a post in.
Post mill, a form of windmill so constructed that the whole fabric rests on a vertical axis firmly fastened to the ground, and capable of being turned as the direction of the wind varies.
Post and stall (Coal Mining), a mode of working in which pillars of coal are left to support the roof of the mine.





Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48


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"From pillar to post" Quotes from Famous Books



... anxiety to know the truth, could hardly contain her impatience. Tossed from pillar to post, dominated once by the strong, evil mind of Balcom, Zita had run the gamut of human emotions before she had barely passed ...
— The Master Mystery • Arthur B. Reeve and John W. Grey
... it worth his while to send the francs-tireurs before his corps commander, to whom the partisans supposed, all along, that they were talking; if they should attempt to listen to all the yarns that were brought them by tramps and peasants, they would have their hands full and be driven from pillar to post without ever advancing a step. He directed the three men to remain with the column, however, since they were acquainted with ...
— The Downfall • Emile Zola
... day of April, 1830, in Kirkland, Ohio, Joseph Smith, Jr., had organized the body best known as the Mormon Church. Fourteen years later he was mercilessly, and unjustly, mobbed at Nauvoo, Illinois, and after three more years of drifting about from pillar to post, the Latter-Day Saints prepared to emigrate to upper California under the absolute domination and guidance of Brigham Young, who was often styled the successor to the "Mohammed of the West," as Joseph Smith was ...
— Trail Tales • James David Gillilan
... peril of the country had brought monarchical France into the field as one man. M. Gambetta's absurd Government of the National Defence, even in that supreme moment of danger when the Uhlans were hunting it from pillar to post, actually compelled the Princes of the House of France to fight for their country under assumed names, but it could not prevent the sons of all the historic families of France from risking their lives against the public enemy. All over ...
— France and the Republic - A Record of Things Seen and Learned in the French Provinces - During the 'Centennial' Year 1889 • William Henry Hurlbert


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