veronica
/vəˈɹɒnɪkə/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.56 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
4
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The image of Jesus's face believed to have been made on the cloth with which St Veronica wiped his face as he went to be crucified; or the cloth used for this.
verb
To draw a muleta over and away from a bull's face in bullfighting.
name
A female given name from Ancient Greek.
Example Sentences
- "A veil that had wiped off the sweat of Christ? Who could possibly believe that? (…) The only true Veronica of this century was the veronica of the matador – the classic slow swing of the cape before the bull’s face, imitating that holy wiping, mocking it."
- "He wiped the lady’s martini glass, having had some trouble with a kind of veronica of lipstick, spat in it viciously, then washed it again."
- "The cougher makes a lunge. Slothrop sweeps aside, gives him a quick veronica with his cape, sticks his foot out and trips the kid, who lies on the ground cursing"
- "He stepped aside as a fight got going between an attendant and some kid by the Alkool display, hopping backwards in a practised veronica when a bottle broke, fearful for his flares."
- "meadows full of wildflowers that seemed to Kit enormous, violets as big as your hand, yellow lilies and blue veronica you could shelter from the rain under"
- "There are also (placed there by man or nature?) quite a lot of skinny fuchsias and dense veronicas, all in flower, and some kind of rather attractive grey-leaved sage."
Etymology
Named after Saint Veronica.
Origin
- Source language: Latin
Word Breakdown
- Root: -, Φερενίκη
Regional Pronunciation
- British English: /vəˈɹɒnɪkə/