Definition of "ziggurat" []

• A temple tower of the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians, having the form of a terraced pyramid of successively receding stories. (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.

• "SHUSTER: The ziggurat is the nearby remains of an ancient pyramid from the Samarian city of Ur, dating back more than 4,000 years."
• "This so called ziggurat is just decadent housing for all the children and wives of the shieks."
• "A ziggurat was a tall, stepped temple-tower believed to connect heaven and earth - hence the angels ascending and descending the steps."