purificator

[ pyoor-uh-fi-key-ter ]

noun

, Ecclesiastical.

1. the linen cloth used by the celebrant for wiping the chalice after each communicant has drunk from it.
2. a sponge wrapped in cloth used by the celebrant for wiping the hands.

purificator

/ ˈpjʊərɪfɪˌkeɪtə /

noun

1. Christianity a small white linen cloth used to wipe the chalice and paten and also the lips and fingers of the celebrant at the Eucharist

Word History and Origins

Origin of purificator¹

1850–55; < Latin pūrificā ( re ) to purify + -tor -tor

Example Sentences

They employ it specially in funeral and expiatory ceremonies as a purificator and as a symbol of immortality.

From Project Gutenberg