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sanctum sanctorum

[sangk-tawr-uh m, -tohr-]
noun
  1. the holy of holies of the Biblical tabernacle and the Temple in Jerusalem.
  2. sanctum(def 2).

Origin of sanctum sanctorum

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin sānctum sānctōrum, translation of Hebrew qōdhesh haqqodhāshīm holy of holies
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Historical Examples of sanctum sanctorum

British Dictionary definitions for sanctum sanctorum

sanctum sanctorum

noun
  1. Bible another term for the holy of holies
  2. often facetious an especially private place

Word Origin for sanctum sanctorum

C14: from Latin, literally: holy of holies, rendering Hebrew qōdesh haqqodāshīm
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
sanctum sanctorum in Culture

sanctum sanctorum

[(sangk-tuhm sangk-tawr-uhm)]

Latin for “holy of holies.” The place in the Jewish temple in Jerusalem (see also Jerusalem) where the Ark of the Covenant was kept. By extension, a sacred and private place.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.