pyx

American  

[piks] / pɪks /

Or pix

noun

1. Ecclesiastical.

   1. the box or vessel in which the reserved Eucharist or Host is kept.

   2. a watch-shaped container for carrying the Eucharist to the sick.

2. Also called pyx chest.  a box or chest at a mint, in which specimen coins are deposited and reserved for trial by weight and assay.

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pyx British  

/ pɪks /

noun

1. Also called: pyx chest.  the chest in which coins from the British mint are placed to be tested for weight, etc

2. Christianity any receptacle in which the Eucharistic Host is kept

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Etymology

Origin of pyx

1350–1400; Middle English pyxe < Latin pyxis < Greek pyxís a box, originally made of boxwood

Example Sentences

Serving a less dramatic function, the Man of Sorrows becomes the thumb-sized lid handle of a beautiful pyx, a container for the consecrated host.

From New York Times • Mar. 31, 2011

Most Namban religious art also perished, except for some rare tea bowls decorated with the cross or an occasional lacquer pyx.

From Time Magazine Archive

For protection Father Theophilus, by special permission, wore a pyx containing the Blessed Sacrament.

From Time Magazine Archive

Edward I., in 1297, presented Margaret, his fourth daughter, with a golden pyx, in which he deposited a ring, as a token of his unfailing love.

From Folk-lore of Shakespeare by Thiselton-Dyer, Thomas Firminger

Take up thy pyx; to Aphrodite go, And claim the promise of thy mighty foe; Maybe that she will grant it to thee now.

From The Poetical Works of Robert Bridges by Bridges, Robert