Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Pagoda \Pa*go"da\, n. [Pg. pagoda, pagode, fr.Hind. & Per.
   but-kadah a house of idols, or abode of God; Per. but an idol
   + kadah a house, a temple.]
   1. A term by which Europeans designate religious temples and
      tower-like buildings of the Hindoos and Buddhists of
      India, Farther India, China, and Japan, -- usually but not
      always, devoted to idol worship.

   2. An idol. [R.] --Brande & C.

   3. [Prob. so named from the image of a pagoda or a deity (cf.
      Skr. bhagavat holy, divine) stamped on it.] A gold or
      silver coin, of various kinds and values, formerly current
      in India. The Madras gold pagoda was worth about three and
      a half rupees.

Source : WordNet®

pagoda
     n : an Asian temple; usually a pyramidal tower with an upward
         curving roof