surplice
/ˈsɝplɪs/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.87 in modern English
12
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
2
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A liturgical vestment of the Christian Church in the form of a tunic of white linen or cotton material, with wide or moderately wide sleeves, reaching to the hips or knees, usually featuring lace decoration and embroidered bordures.
Example Sentences
- "On the previous night he had taken the manuscript out of a long neglected chest, containing old shooting jackets, old Oxbridge scribbling books, his old surplice, and battered cap and gown, and other memorials of youth, school, and home."
- "Beneath an old ebony table were two long carved oak chests. I lifted the lid of one, and at the top was a once-white surplice covered with dust, and beneath was a mass of tracts — Commonwealth Quartos, unbound — a prey to worms and decay."
- "[…] the flagstones of the floor, the mats, the banners above the choir, the steps of the ambo, the ancient books black with age, the cassocks and surplices, were all inundated with light."
- "He was a wide man and looked wider in his surplice, especially from our pew, which was close up under the pulpit."
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English surplys, from Old French surpeliz, from Medieval Latin superpelliceum, from Latin super (“over”) and pellis (“fur”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈsɝplɪs/
- British English: /ˈsɜːplɪs/