: a usually dome-shaped structure (such as a mound) serving as a Buddhist shrine

Illustration of stupa

Illustration of stupa

Examples of stupa in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
At one edge of the lawn, tall Tibetan prayer flag stands next to a white incense-burning stupa, much like the one on the family property in Taktser. Anne F. Thurston, Foreign Affairs, 23 Feb. 2016 The stupa, a Buddhist structure, is one of the oldest forms of sacred architecture on Earth. Roger Naylor, The Arizona Republic, 18 Oct. 2024 But in 2022, Chilean engineers built similar ice stupa prototypes in the Andes. Cameron Pugh, The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Jan. 2024 All around me, amid a handful of stupas and temples, were the flattened foundations of buildings in the religious complex. Aatish Taseer, New York Times, 9 Nov. 2023 See all Example Sentences for stupa 

Word History

Etymology

Sanskrit stūpa

First Known Use

1841, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of stupa was in 1841

Dictionary Entries Near stupa

Cite this Entry

“Stupa.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stupa. Accessed 3 Jan. 2025.

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