a Hindu practice whereby a widow immolates herself on the funeral pyre of her husband: now abolished by law.
a Hindu widow who so immolates herself.
First recorded in 1780–90, sati is from the Sanskrit word satī good woman, woman devoted to her husband
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It mandated death or life term for those committing sati or abetting it.
From BBC • Oct. 18, 2024
He said he had spent 45 days in prison on charges of sati glorification but was acquitted in January 2004 for “lack of evidence”.
From BBC • Oct. 18, 2024
Scholars of the history of self-immolation typically date the phenomenon to antiquity, to early Christian martyrdoms, and particularly to the Hindu practice of sati.
From Salon • May 4, 2024
A wealthier widow, particularly from the Kshatriya or warrior caste, might throw herself on her husband’s funeral pyre in an act of ritual suicide known as sati.
From Textbooks • Apr. 19, 2023
The practice of sati was finally prohibited in 1829, without exciting the least discontent.
From The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India Volume II by Russell, R. V. (Robert Vane)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
