breviary

[ bree-vee-er-ee, brev-ee- ]

See synonyms for breviary on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural bre·vi·ar·ies.

Roman Catholic Church. a book containing all the daily psalms, hymns, prayers, lessons, etc., necessary for reciting the office.
a book of daily prayers and readings in some other churches.

Origin of breviary

First recorded in 1540–50, breviary is from the Latin word breviārium an abridgment. See brevi-, -ary

Words Nearby breviary

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use breviary in a sentence

A young priest was standing there overlooking the operations of some workmen, and muttering his breviary.
The False Chevalier | William Douw Lighthall
He knelt down as he said this, and with trembling lips and tearful eyes recited some verses from his breviary.
The Knight Of Gwynne, Vol. I (of II) | Charles James Lever
He sat with knitted brows at the foot of a bush, and nervously turned the pages of his breviary.
The Surprises of Life | Georges Clemenceau
A Roman breviary lay open on a velvet-covered table before the crucifix.
Joan of the Sword Hand | S(amuel) R(utherford) Crockett
After he had thoroughly broken his fast, he went to church; and they carried for him, in a great basket, a huge breviary.
The Best of the World's Classics, Restricted to Prose, Vol. VII (of X)--Continental Europe I | Various

British Dictionary definitions for breviary

breviary

/ (ˈbriːvjərɪ) /

nounplural -ries

RC Church a book of psalms, hymns, prayers, etc, to be recited daily by clerics in major orders and certain members of religious orders as part of the divine office
a similar book in the Orthodox Church

Origin of breviary

C16: from Latin breviārium an abridged version, from breviāre to shorten, from brevis short

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

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