How to use finial in a sentence

13 example sentences · noun

Finial means especially in Gothic architecture: an ornament, often in the form of a bunch or knot of foliage, on the peak of the gable of a roof, a pediment, a pinnacle, etc. Example: “The steep slate roofs were topped with bronze finials so tall and fanciful they looked like drops of liquid sliding down a thread.”

Examples of finial by meaning

nounEspecially in Gothic architecture: an ornament, often in the form of a bunch or knot of foliage, on the peak of the...

The steep slate roofs were topped with bronze finials so tall and fanciful they looked like drops of liquid sliding down a thread.2004, Alan Hollinghurst, chapter 3, in The Line of Beauty […], 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN, page 54

nounAny decorative fitting on the corner, end, or top of an object such as a canopy, a fencepost, a flagpole, a curtain...

The finial is also of timber (probably oak) and is of the rather elaborate type, originally favoured by the London & South Western Railway for its timber masts.1947 January–February, “Notes and News: An Unusual Signal at Mottisfont, S.R.”, in The Railway Magazine, London: Tothill Press, →ISSN...
It was a narrow, gravelled island we had to lie on, guarded by glazed brick chimneys and, running along the sides, a prickly little gothic fence of iron finials and terracotta quatrefoils.1988, Alan Hollinghurst, chapter 7, in The Swimming-Pool Library, London: Vintage, published 1998, →ISBN, page 142
Mark Twain called the cherimoya "deliciousness itself," though others have described this heart-shaped, fist-sized fruit with pale-green leathery skin as "reptilian," like a "fossil artichoke" or "the finial for a giant four-poster bed."1994 January 12, David Karp, “Once considered exotic, some fruits become family”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times...

More sentences with finial

In the gable over the window the finials have width in the ratio of √2:4:2.2007, John James, In Search of the Unknown in Medieval Architecture, Pindar Press, →ISBN, page 438. From the entry knop
Ackling finds pieces of driftwood along the shore, or interesting wooden clothespins, finials, and honey-dippers in an antique market.2004 November 5, Cate McQuaid, “Painter looks at life through a lens”, in The Boston Globe, volume 266, number 128, Boston, Mass., page D20. From the entry honey-dipper
The threaded stud on the swivel accepts the finial.1991, Kalton C. Lahue, Cheryl Smith, Interior Lighting, page 104. From the entry harp
Yet each community had a turning (pommel or finial) at the top of the post whose shape distinguished it from the work of other communities.2010, M. Stephen Miller, Inspired Innovations: A Celebration of Shaker Ingenuity. From the entry pommel
One fragment of pillar had a pommel finial with a mortise, indicating that it once held a metal object, perhaps a cross.2005, Susan T. Stevens, Bir Ftouha: a pilgrimage church complex at Carthage. From the entry pommel
Shows sockets, wire, harps, glass chimneys and globes, shade holders, bases, finials, and hundreds of items necessary in the building of lamps.1960, School Shop, volume 20, page 36. From the entry harp
At the centre of this façade of one story is a porch of two stories with a tall attic and a gable of ogee outline flanked by finials.1905, Charles Herbert Moore, “Chapter 13”, in Character of Renaissance Architecture. From the entry ogee
It is somewhat unusual that the foot of the bedstock, which has its own low, freestanding footposts with turned finials, is also tenoned to the main footposts supporting the tester.1998, Valerie Dorge, F. Carey Howlett, Painted Wood: History and Conservation, page 319. From the entry bedstock
There came a hurtle of wings, a flash of bright feathers, and a great pigeon with slate-grey plumage and a neck bright as an opal, lit on a swaying finial.1913, Eden Phillpotts, chapter IV, in Widecombe Fair, London: John Murray, […], →OCLC, page 26. From the entry hurtle

Meaning of finial

noun Especially in Gothic architecture: an ornament, often in the form of a bunch or knot of foliage, on the peak of the gable of a roof, a pediment, a pinnacle, etc.
noun Any decorative fitting on the corner, end, or top of an object such as a canopy, a fencepost, a flagpole, a curtain rod, or the newel post of a staircase.
noun The completion or end of something.

Full definition of finial

Questions about finial in a sentence

How do you use finial in a sentence?: Finial is used as a noun. For example: “The steep slate roofs were topped with bronze finials so tall and fanciful they looked like drops of liquid sliding down a thread.”
What is a short sentence with finial?: “The threaded stud on the swivel accepts the finial.”
What does finial mean?: Finial means especially in Gothic architecture: an ornament, often in the form of a bunch or knot of foliage, on the peak of the gable of a roof, a pediment, a pinnacle, etc.

Adapted from Wiktionary: finial (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “How to use finial in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/finial. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.