柱|はしらhashira[3]odaka (tail-high)

1. nounpillar; post
   この橋はしは１０本ぽんの柱はしらで支ささえられている。↗

   The bridge is supported by 10 posts.
2. nounsupport; prop; mainstay
   海外かいがい向むけ食品しょくひんの輸出ゆしゅつは農業のうぎょう関連かんれん産業さんぎょうの柱はしらの一ひとつです。↗

   Overseas food exports are one of the mainstays of agribusiness.
3. suffix, countercounter for buddhas, gods, nobles, etc.

• Synonym支柱しちゅうWrittenWritten/formal prose. A prop or stay made to support something; also figuratively a spiritual mainstay, as in 「心の支柱」. Stresses the supporting role.
• Synonym大黒柱だいこくばしらNeutralThe central pillar of a house; figuratively the breadwinner or backbone of a family, as in 「一家の大黒柱」. Stresses the core role more than 「柱」.
• Synonym主柱しゅちゅうWrittenWritten/formal prose. The principal or central pillar of a building; rarely used.
• Related中枢ちゅうすうWrittenWritten/formal prose. A central hub or core of an organization; stresses the control-centre sense, not a physical pillar.
• Related基幹きかんWrittenWritten/formal prose. The backbone or core of a system or industry, as in 「基幹産業」「基幹システム」; not a physical pillar.
• Related屋台骨やたいぼねNeutralThe framework of a building; figuratively the foundation of an organization, as in 「会社の屋台骨」. Mostly figurative.
• RelatedバックボーンNeutralLoanword. An emotional or spiritual backbone, or the trunk line of a network; mostly figurative.
• RelatedキーストーンWrittenLoanword. The keystone of an arch; in baseball, the shortstop and second baseman duo. Overlaps with 「柱」 only as a metaphor for a key support.
• Related柱石ちゅうせきWrittenWritten/formal prose. A pillar and its base stone; figuratively a person who underpins the nation, as in 「国家の柱石」. Mostly figurative for people.
• Related要石かなめいしWrittenWritten/formal prose. The stone set in the centre of an arch that holds it together; figuratively something indispensable. Mostly figurative.
• Antonym梁はりNeutralA horizontal beam; in a building's structure it is the opposite of the upright 「柱」.

Use 「柱」 for a vertical post that supports a building or for a spiritual pillar; it also serves as a counter for gods and buddhas, as in 「三本の柱」「一家の柱」. For a family's breadwinner say 「大黒柱」, for a prop or support 「支柱」, and for a horizontal beam 「梁」. The remaining words are written or figurative terms for a core support.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. （はしら）材ざいを垂直すいちょくに立たてて建築物けんちくぶつや器具きぐなどの支ささえとしたもの。
2. （はしら）神仏しんぶつ、高貴こうきな人ひと、死者ししゃの霊れい、遺骨いこつを数かぞえるのに用もちいる。