numen

[ noo-min, nyoo- ]

/ ˈnu mɪn, ˈnyu- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR numen ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural nu·mi·na [noo-muh-nuh, nyoo-] /ˈnu mə nə, ˈnyu-/.

divine power or spirit; a deity, especially one presiding locally or believed to inhabit a particular object.

Nearby words

numbfish, numbing, numbles, numbskull, numdah, numen, numerable, numeracy, numeraire, numeral, numeral system

Origin of numen

1620–30; < Latin nūmen a nod, command, divine will or power, divinity; akin to nūtāre to nod the head in commanding or assent

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for numen

Nuere should therefore express a simple exercise of will-power, and numen is the being119 exercising it.
The Religious Experience of the Roman People|W. Warde Fowler
Numen is so important a word in the Roman religion that it is necessary to be perfectly clear as to what was meant by it.
The Religious Experience of the Roman People|W. Warde Fowler
The notion of the numen is always vague and indefinite: even its sex may be uncertain.
The Religion of Ancient Rome|Cyril Bailey
The populus was the tree of Hercules, and the plane-tree was the “numen of Atridæ.”
Cultus Arborum|Anonymous

I do not say that he or any other numen was the better for the change.
The Religious Experience of the Roman People|W. Warde Fowler

British Dictionary definitions for numen

numen

/ (ˈnjuːmɛn) /

noun plural -mina (-mɪnə)

(esp in ancient Roman religion) a deity or spirit presiding over a thing or place

a guiding principle, force, or spirit

Word Origin for numen

C17: from Latin: a nod (indicating a command), divine power; compare nuere to nod

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