dais

noun

da·​is ˈdā-əs 

nonstandard

ˈdī- 

: a raised platform (as in a hall or large room)

Mounting the dais which had been set up for his use, he swirled the sinister cloak about him and sat down in the Abbot's chair.

—Brian Jacques

Synonyms

• platform
• podium
• rostrum
• stage
• stand
• tribune

Examples of dais in a Sentence

the speaker took his place at the front of the dais

Recent Examples on the Web

And at the inauguration, Mr. Musk, Mr. Bezos, Mr. Zuckerberg, Mr. Cook and Mr. Pichai all appeared on the dais next to cabinet members. —Cecilia Kang, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025

During the recess, Kelly and board member Joni Shaw Smith remained at the dais while the other four trustees left the room. —Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Feb. 2025

The tech leaders were originally supposed to sit on the dais — a position of honor where Trump’s family members, former presidents and other high-profile guests would sit. —Miranda Nazzaro, The Hill, 19 Jan. 2025

Shou Zi Chew has been invited to sit in a position of honor on the dais, which is typically reserved for former presidents, family members and other important guests, the report said. —Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 17 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English deis, des "high table, elevated platform occupied by a court or council," borrowed from Anglo-French deis, dais (continental Old French deis "table of honor set up on a platform"), going back to Medieval Latin discus "raised table, platform," going back to Latin, "discus, kind of plate, gong," borrowed from Greek dískos "discus," in Late Greek also "dish, round mirror, the sun's disk, gong" — more at discus

Note: See note at dish entry 1. The predominant form in Middle French is dois, which should have resulted in Modern French [dwa]; the reason for the outcome dais [dɛ], with the presumed shift [dwɛ] to [dɛ], is in this, as in a number of parallel cases, unclear. As pointed out by the Oxford English Dictionary, first edition, the English word was, excepting Scots, out of use by 1600; the current word is an antiquarian revival, with the spelling presumably copying modern French.

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for dais

• ablaze
• airways
• allays
• always
• amaze
• anglaise
• appraise
• archways
• arrays
• ashtrays
• assays
• ballets

Kids Definition

dais

noun

da·​is ˈdā-əs 

: a raised platform (as in a large room)