rosary

American  

[roh-zuh-ree] / ˈroʊ zə ri /

noun

plural

rosaries

1. Roman Catholic Church.

   1. none the rosary or the Rosary a series of prayers, usually consisting of 15 sets of 10 Ave Marias, each set of 10 being preceded by a Paternoster and followed by a Gloria Patri, and each including a prayer that recalls one of the mysteries or events in the life of Christ or the Virgin Mary.

      All through that crisis, I never stopped praying the rosary and other devotions dear to my heart.

      He learned to say the Rosary as a kid going to Catholic school, and never lost the habit.

   2. a string of beads used for counting these prayers during their recitation.

      As a memento of my visit to the basilica, I bought a lovely sandalwood rosary.

   3. a similar string of beads consisting of five sets of 10.

2. in various non–Roman Catholic faith traditions, a string of beads used in praying, especially to count recited prayers.

   The auspicious number 108 represents the number of beads in a Buddhist rosary.

   One of the beauties of the Anglican rosary is the ability to use it with your own prayers according to your preferences, needs, or the liturgical season.

3. a rose garden or a bed of roses.

   The rosebushes in the rosary are covered with burlap to protect the buds from late spring frost.

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rosary British  

/ ˈrəʊzərɪ /

noun

1. RC Church

   1. a series of prayers counted on a string of beads, usually consisting of five or 15 decades of Aves, each decade beginning with a Paternoster and ending with a Gloria

   2. a string of 55 or 165 beads used to count these prayers as they are recited

2. (in other religions) a similar string of beads used in praying

3. a bed or garden of roses

4. an archaic word for garland

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rosary Cultural  

1. A set of prayers common in the Roman Catholic Church, said during meditation on events in the lives of Jesus and of Mary, the mother of Jesus. A rosary is also the string of beads that the worshiper uses to count the prayers.

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Etymology

Origin of rosary

First recorded in 1350–1400, for an earlier sense; 1400–50 rosary for def. 3; 1540–50 rosary for def. 1; Middle English rosarie, from Medieval Latin rosārium, in all current senses (in Latin: “rose garden”); equivalent to rose ¹ + -ary

Explanation

For Catholics, the rosary is a series of prayers or the name of the prayer beads used while praying. The word rosary can also refer to a set of beads for counting prayers in other religions. When it refers to the prayer, Rosary is usually capitalized (like the Lord's Prayer or Hail Mary). The full Rosary includes many repetitions of specific prayers, and the rosary beads are used to count them. As well as being spiritually significant, rosaries are beautiful, with beads made of wood, silver, gold, or semi-precious stones. Rosary comes from rosaire, "rose garden" in Middle French — think of the rosary as a "garden of prayers."

Example Sentences

A toddler sat on her mother’s lap, clutching a rosary.

From Slate • Mar. 29, 2026

One visitor touched her rosary beads on the case.

From Barron's • Feb. 22, 2026

The rosary presupposes our boredom, propensity to distraction, and impatience with dull routine and attempts to transmute these failings into the virtues of faith, hope and charity.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 8, 2026

Many of the phrases repeated most often in the rosary are petitions.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 8, 2026

We prayed rosary after rosary, until the monotonous sound of prayers blended into the blur of flickering altar candles.

From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya