introit
/ˈɪnˌtɹɔɪt/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 1.69 in modern English
7
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
3
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A prayer, typically part of a psalm or other portion of the Bible, read or sung at the start of Mass while or immediately after the priest ascends to the altar.
Example Sentences
- "The Glossary of Terms used by ecclesiastics in the middle ages, who describe a day by the “introit,” or commencement of the service appointed by the church to be performed thereon, and an explanation of the Canonical Hours, Watches, &c. will frequently be found useful."
- "Adorate Dominum. The introit* and name of the third Sunday after the Epiphany. [Footnote *: Introit.—The first two or more words that form the commencement of a mass, which, from being appropriated to a certain Sunday, or other festival, give the name of such commencement or "introit" to these days.]"
- "At some time during these sacerdotal preces the choir will usually have started the sung introit, the exact time for beginning the item dependent on a number of features such as the distance from sacristy to altar."
- "The earliest unequivocal reference to the Roman introit is from the turn-of-the-eighth-century Ordo romanus I, where the chant is described in its fully developed early medieval form. Consisting of an antiphon and psalm, it is sung during the entrance of the pope at the beginning of Mass."
Etymology
PIE word *h₁én From Late Middle English introite (“act of entering in or into, entrance; place of entrance”), borrowed from Anglo-Norman introït, introïte (“introit”), or from its etymon Latin introitus (“act of entering in or into, entrance; passage; place of entrance; (figuratively) beginning, introduction, prelude”), from introeō (“to enter, go in”) + -tus (suffix forming action nouns from verbs). Introeō is derived from intrō (“to enter, go into”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁én (“in”)) + eō (“to go”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ey- (“to go”)).
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈɪnˌtɹɔɪt/
- British English: /ˈɪntɹɔɪt/