(often initial capital letter) Also Pater Noster. the Lord's Prayer, especially in the Latin form.
a recitation of this prayer as an act of worship.
one of certain beads in a rosary, regularly every 11th bead, differing in size or material from the rest and indicating that the Lord's Prayer is to be said.
any fixed recital of words used as a prayer or magical charm.
a doorless, continuously moving elevator for passengers or goods, having numerous platforms or compartments that rise or descend on a moving chain.
(initial capital letter) pearl molding.
RC Church the beads at the ends of each decade of the rosary marking the points at which the Paternoster is recited
any fixed form of words used as a prayer or charm
Also called: paternoster line. a type of fishing tackle in which short lines and hooks are attached at intervals to the main line
a type of lift in which platforms are attached to continuous chains. The lift does not stop at each floor but passengers enter while it is moving
the Lord's Prayer, esp in Latin
the recital of this as an act of devotion
before 1000; Middle English, Old English: Lord's prayer < Latin pater noster our father, its first two words in the Vulgate (Matthew VI: 9
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Such so-called paternoster elevators still survive in some German public buildings.
From Seattle Times ● May 25, 2023
Nowadays, the very paternoster that inspired Heinrich Böll’s story is the setting for a popular weekly radio celebrity interview by West German Radio called the WDR2 Paternoster.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 14, 2015
I’m too impatient to wait for a conventional lift and the best thing about a paternoster is that you can hop on and off it as you please.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 14, 2015
It warns of the “risk of being crushed … between car and landing”, and states that the paternoster is only to be ridden “at the user’s own risk”.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 14, 2015
He would have every child in his empire to know at least his paternoster, and every abbot on election was required to endow the monastery with some books.
From The Story of Paris by Kimball, Katherine
The Paternoster lift at the University of Leicester's Attenborough Tower closed in 2017 - despite a petition to save it - because officials said it became too expensive to maintain.
From BBC ● Mar. 28, 2023
And Paternoster totally shreds, on her guitar and in her throat.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 20, 2023
She may have voters like Christy Paternoster in mind.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 21, 2019
To answer another posters inquiry about Paternoster elevators -- they were never used here in the United States.
From New York Times ● Dec. 15, 2017
He never appeared at Court, and rented a modest apartment in Paternoster Street without giving his address to anyone.
From The Strange Story of Rab R?by by J?kai, M?r
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.
