From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Pedestal \Ped"es*tal\, n. [Sp. pedestal; cf. F. pi['e]destal,
It. piedestallo; fr. L. es, pedis, foot + OHG. stal standing
place, station, place, akin to E. stall. See Foot, and
Stall, and Footstall.]
1. (Arch.) The base or foot of a column, statue, vase, lamp,
or the like; the part on which an upright work stands. It
consists of three parts, the base, the die or dado, and
the cornice or surbase molding. See Illust. of Column.
[1913 Webster]
Build him a pedestal, and say, "Stand there!"
--Cowper.
[1913 Webster]
2. Hence: A short free-standing column or column-like object
designed to support a work of art or other object; a
column serving the same function as the base of a statue.
It may be made of wood, marble, or other suitable
material.
[PJC]
3. (Furniture) A part of a desk which contains a frame and
drawers, stands on the floor, and provides support for the
desk surface. There may be zero, one, or two such
pedestals in a desk.
[PJC]
4.
(a) (Railroad Cars) A casting secured to the frame of a
truck and forming a jaw for holding a journal box.
(b) (Mach.) A pillow block; a low housing.
(c) (Bridge Building) An iron socket, or support, for the
foot of a brace at the end of a truss where it rests
on a pier.
[1913 Webster]
Pedestal coil (steam Heating), a group of connected
straight pipes arranged side by side and one above
another, -- used in a radiator.
[1913 Webster]
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
pedestal
n 1: a support or foundation; "the base of the lamp" [syn:
base, pedestal, stand]
2: a position of great esteem (and supposed superiority); "they
put him on a pedestal"
3: an architectural support or base (as for a column or statue)
[syn: pedestal, plinth, footstall]