bannister

noun

1. banister.

noun

1. Sir Roger (Gilbert),born 1929, English track and field athlete: first to run a mile in less than four minutes.

noun

1. a baluster.
2. Sometimes banisters. the balustrade of a staircase.

noun

1. Sir Roger (Gilbert). born 1929, British athlete and doctor: first man to run a mile in under four minutes (1954)

n.

1660s, unexplained corruption of baluster. As late as 1830 condemned as “vulgar,” it is now accepted. Surname Bannister is from Old French banastre “basket,” hence, “basket-maker.”