Noah Webster
Apophthegm
AP'OPHTHEGM,
APOPH'YGE,
APOPH'YGY, noun [Gr. from, and flight.]
1. In architecture, the part of a column, where it springs out of its base; originally a ring or ferrel to bind the extremities of columns, and keep them from splitting; afterwards imitated in stone pillars. It is sometimes called the spring of the column.
2. A concave part or ring of a column, lying above or below the flat member.