Poles are longer than posts, but there is no real standard that indicates when to call something a pole and when it is a post. Technically, poles are long and relative to their length thin and not strong. Posts are thick and sturdy and support significant weight. Many people use the words interchangeably. Examples might help: Poles - telephone, pole vaulting, supports for gym equipment (high bar, parallel bars) Posts - mailbox post, vertical wood support pieces in house building One last note. In building, vertical wood pieces that support the weight of floors and roofs are posts, but if they are made of steel and/or concrete we tend to call them columns, even though they perform the same function.

Vincent, I started to answer this and soon realized that it was going to be complicated. The structural element of a building is usually considered a post…as in ‘post and beam construction’, but not always. Pole barn…. a barn that is constructed with support poles that serve as the underlying support structure for the outer walls and roof. I copied this from the Unabridged Oxford for you. 1) POST… A stout piece of timber, or other solid material, of considerable length, and usually of CYLINDRICAL or SQUARE shape, used in a vertical position, esp. in building as a SUPPORT FOR A SUPERSTRUCTURE. A post can be a pole. 2) POST…A stout stick or stake, usually of wood, with a pointed end for driving into the ground, stout POLE, column, or the like, that is set upright in or on the ground, for various purposes; e.g. as a boundary mark, landmark, or monument, a stand for displaying public notices, a support for a fence, a point of attachment, etc. POLE… In modern use a long, slender, and more or less CYLINDRICAL and tapering piece of wood (sometimes metal), as the straight stem of a slender tree stripped of its branches; used as a SUPPORT for a tent, hops or other climbing plants, telegraph or telephone wires, etc., for scaffolding, and for other purposes. Telephone pole Mast pole Goalpost pole vault ------------------------ when they both mean "a stick"? Pole used to have a more general meaning which included 2) POST. This older meaning is still retained in many informal uses (with or without a pointed end) where pole and post are interchangeable. POLE… In early use, a strong stick or POST, usually of wood, with a pointed end for driving into the ground; used e.g. to mark a boundary or site, to support a plant, to secure an animal, to form one of the component parts of a fence, hedge, or the like, WITHOUT REFERENCE TO LENGTH OR THICKNESS. The modern sense becomes clear first c 1440.

a pole is any long cylindrical object usually made of wood. examples a pole vault (used in the olympic game sport of pole vaulting) a may pole ( a tall pole used in May day dances) a post can have many meanings but the meaning closest to the one above is a piece of wood or metal thsat is used to show something such as the start or finish of a race or a claim. Very large supports of a large building are called pillars or columns such as those seen in classic Greek and Roman architecture later used in European architecture of all ages since. Hope this helps! John

By the way, a stick can be made of any material, but usually wood, and it should be very thin, flexible, relatively straight and not capable of bearing any significant weight (meaning it breaks very easily under stress). It is not really a building term, but we use the term "stick built houses" to mean houses built totally on the building site (as opposed to parts being built in a factory) from pieces of wood, one piece of wood (or "stick") at a time.