simony
/ˈsaɪ.mə.ni/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.92 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The buying or selling of spiritual or sacred things, such as ecclesiastical offices, pardons, or consecrated objects.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "To his eyes it had no attraction; it savoured of simony, and was likely to bring down upon him harder and more deserved strictures than any he had yet received: he positively declined to become vicar of Puddingdale under any circumstances."
- "‘There are those two,’ he then said, ‘who were recently arraigned on a charge of high simony. Fancying a monstrance and stealing it and proposing to sell it. They pleaded the usual pagan ignorance.’"
- "He openly practiced simony; in other words, he sold benefices."
Etymology
From Middle English simonie, symonye, from Old French simonie, from Late Latin simonia, named after Simon Magus (Hebrew שִׁמְעוֹן (Šimʻôn, “Simon”)), with reference to Acts 8:18–20.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: simonie, simonia, שִׁמְעוֹן
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈsaɪ.mə.ni/
- British English: /ˈsaɪ.mə.ni/