Psalter

[ sawl-ter ]
See synonyms for Psalter on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the Biblical book of Psalms.

  2. (sometimes lowercase) a psalmbook.

Origin of Psalter

1
before 900; <Late Latin psaltērium the Psalter, Latin: a psaltery <Greek psaltḗrion stringed instrument; replacing Middle English sauter (<Anglo-French <Late Latin ) and Old English saltere (<Late Latin, as above)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Psalter in a sentence

  • On the book-rest repose the old black-letter parchment psalters.

    Cathedral Cities of Italy | William Wiehe Collins
  • And there they laid his corpse in the body of the quire, and sang and read many psalters and prayers over him and about him.

  • If any had taken such vows she was to say as many psalters as it would have taken days to perform the pilgrimage so rashly vowed.'

    Medieval People | Eileen Edna Power
  • On the shelf over the door (in suprema theca supra ostium) were four psalters.

    The Care of Books | John Willis Clark
  • Gospel-books and Psalters, however, exhibit features somewhat akin to English work.

    Illuminated Manuscripts | John W. Bradley

British Dictionary definitions for Psalter

Psalter

/ (ˈsɔːltə) /


noun
  1. another name for Psalms, esp in the version in the Book of Common Prayer

  2. a translation, musical, or metrical version of the Psalms

  1. a devotional or liturgical book containing a version of Psalms, often with a musical setting

Origin of Psalter

1
Old English psaltere, from Late Latin psaltērium, from Greek psaltērion stringed instrument, from psallein to play a stringed instrument

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012