sacrarium
/səˈkɹɛɹi.əm/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
In Ancient Rome, a place where sacred objects were kept, either in a temple (the adytum) or in a house (holding the penates)
noun
The area surrounding the altar of a Christian church; the sanctuary or piscina. Sometimes specifically a drain directly to the earth, perhaps including reference to a basin, for washing vessels from consecration.
Example Sentences
- "The hay-trusser deposited his basket by the font, went up the nave till he reached the altar-rails, and opening the gate entered the sacrarium, where he seemed to feel a sense of the strangeness for a moment; then he knelt upon the footpace."
- "2016, Martin Pousson, Black Sheep Boy, Los Angeles: Rare Bird Books, Part I, “Wanted Man,” The bathroom looked like a radiant sacristy, the sink a piscine, the drain a sacrarium."
Etymology
From Latin sacrārium.
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /səˈkɹɛɹi.əm/
- British English: /səˈkɹɛəɹi.əm/