orison

American  

[awr-uh-zuhn, or-] / ˈɔr ə zən, ˈɒr- /

noun

1. a prayer.

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orison British  

/ ˈɒrɪzən /

noun

1. literary another word for prayer 1

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Etymology

Origin of orison

1125–75; Middle English < Old French < Late Latin ōrātiōn- (stem of ōrātiō ) plea, prayer, oration

Explanation

An orison is a prayer or plea to a deity. You might make an orison if you wanted your sick mom to get better. Some words are considered archaic — meaning they are not in common modern use. Such a word is orison, which means a prayer. Today, you'd be surprised to see the word outside of a poem or some liturgical reference. This comes from a Latin word meaning to speak, and it means to speak to God. It's a poetic word Shakespeare used in Romeo and Juliet, when Juliet says, "I have need of many orisons" as she prepares to deceive her parents.

Example Sentences

Eggs, those wondrous orbs of orison, break into an omelette or simply sunny-side up.

From The Guardian • May 24, 2016

That orison alone ought to be enough to give Mr. Lhota the shivers.

From New York Times • Dec. 6, 2012

In turn, the testimony of Sonmi~451 is recorded on a device called an "orison" and survives into the post-apocalyptic world of the illiterate Zach'ry, who "yarns" the sixth and central narrative.

From The Guardian • Jun. 4, 2010

The title itself comes from a Zen Buddhist pal who always uttered "his senseless little orison" on leaving King's apartment.

From Time Magazine Archive

He respected her whispered grace and always felt that he could add nothing to it in thankfulness or reverence if he uttered an orison himself.

From Sheila of Big Wreck Cove A Story of Cape Cod by Owen, R. Emmett (Robert Emmett)