Word Study
stela
CIDE DICTIONARY
stela, n. [L., from Gr. a post, an upright stone.].
A small column or pillar, used as a monument, milestone, etc. [1913 Webster]
OXFORD DICTIONARY
stela, n. (pl. stelae) Archaeol. an upright slab or pillar usu. with an inscription and sculpture, esp. as a gravestone.
Etymology
L f. Gk (as STELE)
THESAURUS
stela
arch, barrow, boundary stone, brass, bust, cairn, cenotaph, column, cromlech, cross, cup, cyclolith, dolmen, footstone, grave, gravestone, headstone, hoarstone, inscription, marker, mausoleum, megalith, memento, memorial, memorial arch, memorial column, memorial statue, memorial stone, menhir, monolith, monument, mound, necrology, obelisk, obituary, pillar, plaque, prize, pyramid, reliquary, remembrance, ribbon, rostral column, shaft, shrine, stone, stupa, tablet, testimonial, tomb, tombstone, tope, trophyFor further exploring for "stela" in Webster Dictionary Online