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Definition of "torii" [torii]

  • The gateway of a Shinto temple, consisting of two uprights supporting a concave crosspiece with projecting ends and a straight crosspiece beneath it. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "torii" in a sentence
  • "A torii is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine."
  • "It is appropriate that the one evidence of man in the 46 photographs at Klotz is an off-kilter torii in "Landscape 37" 2010; a torii is a ceremonial Japanese gateway that marks the entrance to a sacred space."
  • "In Takeshi Shikama's image the torii is on a slope where it blends in with the trees, shrubs and rocks."