Illustration of totem pole
- totem pole 1
totem pole
noun
1
: a pole or pillar carved and painted with a series of totemic symbols representing family lineage and often mythical or historical incidents and erected by Indian tribes of the northwest coast of North America
2
: an order of rank : hierarchy
Examples of totem pole in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Today, Angoon remains a quaint village of about 420 people, with colorful old homes and totem poles clustered on the west side of Admiralty Island, accessible by ferry or float plane, in the Tongass National Forest, the nation's largest.
—
CBS News, 26 Oct. 2024
Mass discounters such as Walmart and Target have also focused on rolling back prices on many items, a move that could attract back shoppers who had traded further down on the retail totem pole.
—Vicki M. Young, Sourcing Journal, 3 Sep. 2019
Master artist Nathan Jackson had put down his chisel and was taking a break from carving a totem pole to chat with me and my husband.
—Fran Golden, Travel + Leisure, 22 June 2024
What Happened Next Surprised Him (Exclusive) Lowe and McCarthy, 61, were part of the famous Brat Pack, a group of young actors that sat at the top of Hollywood’s totem pole in the 1980s.
—Jen Juneau, Peoplemag, 6 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for totem pole 
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of
Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback
about these examples.
CBS News, 26 Oct. 2024
Mass discounters such as Walmart and Target have also focused on rolling back prices on many items, a move that could attract back shoppers who had traded further down on the retail totem pole.
—Vicki M. Young, Sourcing Journal, 3 Sep. 2019
Master artist Nathan Jackson had put down his chisel and was taking a break from carving a totem pole to chat with me and my husband.
—Fran Golden, Travel + Leisure, 22 June 2024
What Happened Next Surprised Him (Exclusive) Lowe and McCarthy, 61, were part of the famous Brat Pack, a group of young actors that sat at the top of Hollywood’s totem pole in the 1980s.
—Jen Juneau, Peoplemag, 6 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for totem pole
Dictionary Entries Near totem pole
Cite this Entry
“Totem pole.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/totem%20pole. Accessed 14 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share