odour of sanctity
Britishnoun
Etymology
Origin of odour of sanctity
C18: originally, the sweet smell said to be exhaled by the bodies of dead saints
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.
From now on to the end of the book the reformed Lucius lives in the odour of sanctity.
From The Conflict of Religions in the Early Roman Empire by Glover, T. R. (Terrot Reaveley)
Such is the odour of sanctity of this venerable church that there is an old local saying that “to be thrice prayed for in the kirk of Birnie will either mend or end ye.”
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 3 "Electrostatics" to "Engis" by Various
The man who purges the Black House of the fiend, so please you, my Lord," said Dauntrees, "should possess more odour of sanctity than I doubt will be found under our soldier's jerkins.
From Rob of the Bowl, Vol. I (of 2) A Legend of St. Inigoe's by Kennedy, John P.
To return from this long similitude to Bertrand de Born: he concluded his stormy career in a manner very characteristic of the times; for he turned monk, and died in the odour of sanctity.
From The Romance of Biography (Vol 1 of 2) or Memoirs of Women Loved and Celebrated by Poets, from the Days of the Troubadours to the Present Age. 3rd ed. 2 Vols. by Jameson, Mrs. (Anna)
"A poor sinner," answered Angelo, "who has no wish left in life but to die in the odour of sanctity."
From The Unknown Quantity A Book of Romance and Some Half-Told Tales by Van Dyke, Henry
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.
