crucifix
Americannoun
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a cross with the figure of Jesus crucified upon it.
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any cross.
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Gymnastics. a stunt performed on the parallel rings in which the athlete holds their body rigid with their legs vertically extended together and their arms extended horizontally from the shoulders.
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of crucifix
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English, from Late Latin crucifīxus “the crucified one” (i.e., Christ), noun use of masculine of past participle of Latin crucifīgere “to crucify; ” see fix
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:
The crucifix and Elgin watch conjured Sunday mornings and the quiet pride of women who never stepped outside without dignity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 5, 2025
A small crucifix is affixed to the wall above, and a rolling, pink-topped hospital table sits on the far side of the room.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2025
Someone knelt down and clipped a microphone to her lapel, a few inches from the crucifix that dangled from her neck.
From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2025
No crucifix, not even a simple dog collar.
From BBC ● Mar. 30, 2025
His immaculate memory called forth the silver crucifix.
From "An Abundance of Katherines" by John Green
But thanks in large part to a memorable head-swiveling cinematic character, Roman collars and crucifixes have long cornered a unique place in the American image of exorcism.
From Salon ● Oct. 8, 2023
Jimbo recalls that “there were crucifixes everywhere” in his studio.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2023
In addition to flowers and fruits, shrines have crosses, but not crucifixes.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 20, 2023
For her, the kind of engagement possible on the internet — memes and one-liners about crucifixes — can ignite as much critical thought about a novel as an annotation.
From New York Times ● Oct. 5, 2022
The shadows of the goal posts definitely resembled a network of crosses, empty crucifixes.
From "The Chocolate War" by Robert Cormier
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.
