santo

American  

[san-toh, sahn-, sahn-taw] / ˈsæn toʊ, ˈsɑn-, ˈsɑn tɔ /

noun

plural

santos

1. a carved figure of a saint, usually of wood, as from Puerto Rico, Mexico, or the southwestern United States.

---

Etymology

Origin of santo

First recorded in 1630–40, for an earlier sense; from Spanish: literally, saint; from Latin sānctus

Example Sentences

To make my own, I alchemized a potpourri of sandalwood, hinoki wood, palo santo, mint, patchouli and tachibana orange.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 14, 2026

It’s such a cliché, but I’ve got this sunset out my window and my palo santo.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 25, 2025

This pretty kit contains mountain sage, frankincense, myrrh and white copal resin; a Selenite stick; crystals and a palo santo stick for smudging.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 16, 2023

They came up with pretty esoteric pairings, including banyuls, a sweet fortified wine from southwestern France, as well as vin santo from Italy.

From Washington Post • Feb. 9, 2023

With a last effort, she pumped her wings and flew straight ahead and came down on a palo santo tree on Es- pariola Island.

From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George