reliquary

[ rel-i-kwer-ee ]

/ ˈrɛl ɪˌkwɛr i /

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noun, plural rel·i·quar·ies.

a repository or receptacle for relics.

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Origin of reliquary

1650–60; <Middle French reliquaire<Medieval Latin reliquiārium, equivalent to Latin reliqui(ae) remains (see relic) + -ārium-ary

Words nearby reliquary

religiously, religious order, Religious Right, Religious Society of Friends, relinquish, reliquary, relique, reliquiae, relish, relive, relleno

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use reliquary in a sentence

On Sunday morning, she carried his vial of blood in an ornate olive-branch style silver reliquary.
Beatification Boosts Vatican|Barbie Latza Nadeau|May 1, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Every January 1, the priest would lead a procession with the relic and its 18th-century reliquary.
Happy Holy Circumcision Day!|David Farley|December 31, 2009|DAILY BEAST
Father Thomas Michelet, having accompanied the reliquary from Sainte-Baume to New York, was surprised by the turnout.
Mary Magdalene and Me|Tracy Quan|November 10, 2009|DAILY BEAST
A special reliquary or glass case, designed for world travel, made the bone fragment visible from all sides.
Mary Magdalene and Me|Tracy Quan|November 10, 2009|DAILY BEAST

The reliquary containing the “Bell of St Patrick” is covered with knotted work in many varieties.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 3|Various
Some portion of this miraculous blood was preserved in a phial, which was set in a reliquary and placed upon the altar.
Tyrol and its People|Clive Holland
Her precious relics in a reliquary, carried on a mule's back, were paraded by ecclesiastics through towns and villages.
The Life of Joan of Arc, Vol. 1 and 2 (of 2)|Anatole France
And the holy reliquary made the round of the whole city, followed by all the people.
The Life of Joan of Arc, Vol. 1 and 2 (of 2)|Anatole France
Around her neck she would wear a long chain with a handsome old reliquary attached to it.
The Four Corners Abroad|Amy Ella Blanchard

British Dictionary definitions for reliquary

reliquary

/ (ˈrɛlɪkwərɪ) /

noun plural -quaries

a receptacle or repository for relics, esp relics of saints

Word Origin for reliquary

C17: from Old French reliquaire, from relique relic

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

reliquary

Origin of reliquary

Words nearby reliquary

Words related to reliquary

How to use reliquary in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for reliquary

Word Origin for reliquary