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prie-dieu

[ pree-dyoo; French pree-dyœ ]

noun

, plural prie-dieus, prie-dieux [pree, -, dyooz, p, r, ee-, dyœ],
  1. a piece of furniture for kneeling on during prayer, having a rest above, as for a book.


prie-dieu

/ priːˈdjɜː /

noun

  1. a piece of furniture consisting of a low surface for kneeling upon and a narrow front surmounted by a rest for the elbows or for books, for use when praying
“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
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Word History and Origins

Origin of prie-dieu1

1750–60; < French: literally, pray God
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Word History and Origins

Origin of prie-dieu1

C18: from French, from prier to pray + Dieu God
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Example Sentences

The Oratory Church of St. Boniface, in downtown Brooklyn, has a chapel dedicated to Cardinal Newman, with an oil portrait, a prie-dieu, and a gold-leaf etching of his poem “Lead, Kindly Light.”

Froment says their new place isn’t so much a house as a giant prie-dieu—the French word for a prayer bench.

Brother Louis made for the tower, and when the President opened his door, Lord Roke darted through and made for the prie-dieu in the corner of the room.

Though not a particularly observant Episcopalian, I do have moments when prayer is on the agenda and a prie-dieu or a bedside genuflection just won’t do.

It depicted key elements in the life of the French mathematician and philosopher, including a Pascaline calculator and a prie-dieu prayer desk.

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