monoliths
Massive single stones
Monoliths is the plural of monolith—a large single block of stone, especially one shaped into a pillar or monument.
The term extends to anything massive and uniform: a corporate monolith, a monolith of bureaucracy.
In science fiction, monoliths often appear as mysterious alien artifacts.
The word implies imposing size and undifferentiated wholeness: The publishing monoliths have swallowed up the independents.
Upright prehistoric monuments
- megalithsLarge prehistoric stones
- bouldersLarge rounded stones
- StonehengePrehistoric megalithic circle
- dolmensAncient stone burial monuments
menhirs · Easter Island · obelisks · rock formations · outcrops · slabs · granite · basalt
- alienNon-native being
- artifactHuman-made historical object
- mysteriousBeyond easy comprehension
- extraterrestrialBeing from outer space
sentinel · signal · enigmatic · cosmic · discovery · spacecraft · intelligence · otherworldly
Solid building mixture
- brutalistAdherent of severity
- skyscrapersExtremely tall urban buildings
- towersTall vertical structures
- pillarsLoad-bearing vertical structures
columns · monuments · memorials · slabs · facades · modernist · imposing · featureless
Corporation spanning many industries
- monopolyOne seller, no substitutes
- behemothCreature of immense size
- corporationLegally separate business entity
- giantBeing of huge size
dominant · centralized · legacy · mainframe · IBM · bureaucracy · hierarchical · inflexible
Building design discipline
- codebaseSoftware project's complete source
- applicationFormal request document
- legacy systemOutdated tech still operating
- unifiedCombined into one
centralized · server · database · deployment · scalability · microservices · migration · refactoring
standing stones
Upright prehistoric monuments
- megalithsLarge prehistoric stones
- bouldersLarge rounded stones
- StonehengePrehistoric megalithic circle
dolmens · menhirs · Easter Island · obelisks · rock formations · outcrops · slabs · granite · basalt · weathering
Kubrick
- alienNon-native being
- artifactHuman-made historical object
- mysteriousBeyond easy comprehension
extraterrestrial · sentinel · signal · enigmatic · cosmic · discovery · spacecraft · intelligence · otherworldly · science fiction
concrete
Solid building mixture
- brutalistAdherent of severity
- skyscrapersExtremely tall urban buildings
- towersTall vertical structures
pillars · columns · monuments · memorials · slabs · facades · modernist · imposing · featureless · stark
conglomerate
Corporation spanning many industries
- monopolyOne seller, no substitutes
- behemothCreature of immense size
- corporationLegally separate business entity
giant · dominant · centralized · legacy · mainframe · IBM · bureaucracy · hierarchical · inflexible · vertical integration
architecture
Building design discipline
- codebaseSoftware project's complete source
- applicationFormal request document
- legacy systemOutdated tech still operating
unified · centralized · server · database · deployment · scalability · microservices · migration · refactoring · modular
- landmarkspyramids, lighthouse, national monument, Colosseum, Eiffel Tower
- monumentsWashington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Statue of Liberty, Mount Rushmore, Arc de Triomphe
- Mesoamerican artAztec art, Aztec relics, codices, stelae, jade carvings
- sacred stonessacred stones, standing stones, stone circles, megaliths, dolmens
- Pinnaclespinnacles, spires, California condor, rock formations, caves
- Meghalayastatehood, rainfall, clouds, rice beer, sacred forests
monolithsassemblages
Grouped collections of things
composites · mosaics · aggregates · patchworks · conglomerates
monolithsfederations
Unions of semi-autonomous states
collectives · coalitions · networks · confederations · ecosystems