exedra

noun

ex·​e·​dra ˈek-sə-drə 

plural exedrae ˈek-sə-ˌdrē 

-ˌdrī

or exedras

1

: a room (as in a temple or house) in ancient Greece and Rome used for conversation and formed by an open or columned recess often semicircular in shape and furnished with seats

2

: a large outdoor nearly semicircular seat with a solid back

Word History

Etymology

Latin, from Greek, from ex- + hedra seat — more at sit

First Known Use

1659, in the meaning defined at sense 1