arcanum
Americannoun
-
arcana
plural
-
Often arcana secret or arcane knowledge, acquired or understood by only a few.
If you enjoy the arcana of early baseball, this book is for you.
-
a supposed great secret of nature that the alchemists sought to discover.
-
a secret and powerful remedy; elixir.
noun
-
(sometimes plural) a profound secret or mystery known only to initiates
-
a secret of nature sought by alchemists
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of arcanum
First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin, neuter (used as noun) of arcānus arcane ( def. )
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.
See Examples For:
Of course, rather than the arcanum of regulation, what most Americans worry about today are economic growth, jobs, and the federal debt.
From Forbes ● Feb. 14, 2012
This is an arcanum of angelic wisdom, however, and therefore cannot be comprehended by man unless his spiritual mind has been opened; for such a man, who is united with the Lord, is an angel.
From Angelic Wisdom about Divine Providence by William F. Wunsch
Profanation to the royal arcanum of their hearts!
From Woven with the Ship A Novel of 1865 by Cyrus Townsend Brady
Trent, watching her, felt that at last he had explored to the inner shrine of that arcanum in her eyes.
From Caravans By Night A Romance of India by Harry Hervey
The acquisition of this arcanum was regarded as the most essential element in the catechetical discipline, and marked off its possessors from the rest of the world.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 5 "Cat" to "Celt" by Various
The idea that this has to be weighted down with law-review articles and footnotes and arcana about the history of a three-part test is a way of obfuscating, right?
From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026
Like those works, “Reflections on Cinematography” offers enough technical arcana to keep colleagues in the profession and students of the craft enraptured.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 13, 2026
The point is that they aren’t arcana that’s only known to the most devoted of Boss fans, so the dissonance between what the audience knows and what they’re being told will have an impact.
From Salon ● Oct. 28, 2025
Among the ultra-blessed 22 cards in the tarot’s major arcana — that is, the cards that have the power to shift the narrative of destiny — we find “The World.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 18, 2024
The first arcana awakens inside me at the sight of it.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
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.
