pentacle

American  

[pen-tuh-kuhl] / ˈpɛn tə kəl /

noun

1. pentagram.

2. a similar figure, as a hexagram.

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pentacle British  

/ ˈpɛntəkəl /

noun

1. another name for pentagram

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Etymology

Origin of pentacle

First recorded in 1585–95, pentacle is from the Italian word pentacolo five-cornered object. See penta-, -cle ¹

Explanation

A five-pointed star can be called a pentacle. Some pagan religions consider the pentacle to be a deeply spiritual symbol. The pentacle — which is also called a pentagram — has been thought of as having protective or powerful magical properties for hundreds of years. The fact that a pentacle can be drawn with one continuous line is sometimes seen as meaningful or mystical. Pentacles are often used as one of the four suits in a tarot deck of fortune-telling cards (although sometimes they're called "coins"). The Greek root of pentacle is pente, "five."

Example Sentences

The pangrams from yesterday’s Spelling Bee were pentacle, placenta and placental.

From New York Times • May 1, 2023

Descendants leave handwritten messages to their relatives, and other visitors, some in witchy attire and sporting pentacle tattoos, pay respect with coins, flowers, shells and painted pebbles.

From New York Times • Oct. 20, 2021

And there was my Victorian pentacle on the road.

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2015

The pentacle earring, I lost a few months ago.

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2015

The brutal thing came with one great sweep straight over the garlic and the 'water circle,' almost to the vale of the pentacle.

From Carnacki, the Ghost Finder by Hodgson, William Hope