sanctity
Americannoun
PLURAL
sanctities-
holiness, saintliness, or godliness.
-
sacred or hallowed character.
the inviolable sanctity of the temple.
-
a sacred thing.
noun
-
the condition of being sanctified; holiness
-
anything regarded as sanctified or holy
-
the condition of being inviolable; sacredness
the sanctity of marriage
Other Word Forms
- nonsanctity noun
- unsanctity noun
Etymology
Origin of sanctity
1350–1400; < Latin sānctitās holiness, equivalent to sānct- ( Sanctus ) + -itās -ity; replacing Middle English sauntite < Anglo-French < Latin, as above
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Meanwhile, Sioux City has been dubbed Sewer City for its fixation on the sanctity of its public works.
Such trivial concerns were left to lesser schools, institutions that perhaps couldn’t appreciate the sanctity of a 10-week regular season, the purity of life without football scholarships, or the venerable tradition of Harvard-Yale.
The bishops called for immigration reform and said they were troubled by threats against the “sanctity of houses of worship and special nature of hospitals and schools.”
From Los Angeles Times
They said they were also troubled by the threats against the “sanctity of houses of worship and special nature of hospitals and schools.”
From Los Angeles Times
Why would a value tied to cleanliness and sanctity shape how people judge billionaires?
From Salon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
