What does balustrade mean?
Word: Balustrade
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Balustrade means a row of short posts with a rail along the top, built along the edge of a balcony, bridge or staircase.
How do you spell balustrade?
Syllables: bal - us - trade
Tricky part: Pupils often double the l, perhaps thinking of ball. There is only one.
Watch out for: ballustrade, bellustrade
Memory tip: You will often see one on a balcony, and balcony also keeps to a single l.
Balustrade in a sentence
Example 1: The stone balustrade beside the hotel steps was covered in jasmine.
Example 2: The carved balustrade along the palace terrace took years to finish.
Example 3: Small monkeys ran along the balustrade of the old bridge.
Fun Fact
The word comes through French from Italian balaustra, the flower of the wild pomegranate, apparently because the curving posts looked like it.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell-o-Spell
One of these words is misspelt. Choose what it means.
1. camaraderie 2. itinerary 3. balustraid 4. gargantuan
a) a low railing on small pillars
b) a plan of the places on a trip
c) extremely large
d) friendship and trust among a group
Show answer
a) a low railing on small pillars. The ending should be the ade of lemonade, so balustraid cannot stand.
Mingle-Mangle
Rearrange the jumbled letters in the sentence to form the right word:
Tourists leaned on the marble euarltabds to watch boats drift down the Ganga.
a) ballerina
b) barricade
c) balustrade
d) bystander
Show answer
c) balustrade. Ten letters are jumbled here, and only one option has ten and a u.
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
bal_st_ade
a) a,r
b) o,r
c) u,l
d) u,r
Show answer
d) u,r. A u follows the opening letters, and the second gap gives the tr blend.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
balusttrade
a) u
b) r
c) s
d) t
Show answer
d) t. The s and the r have a single t between them.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these is closest in purpose to a balustrade?
a) the carpet on a long staircase
b) the lamp at the end of a street
c) the mat at the door of a house
d) the fence along a high walkway
Show answer
d) the fence along a high walkway
2. What is the main use of a balustrade on a terrace?
a) to stop people from falling over the edge
b) to hold up the whole weight of the roof
c) to keep the sun from reaching the floor
d) to carry rainwater down to the garden
Show answer
a) to stop people from falling over the edge
