benedictine means of or pertaining to St. Benedict of Nursia. It carries an Arena rating of 1702, earned across 5 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, benedictine ranks #1,906 of 17,104 for Most Storied Words, #2,281 of 17,130 for Most Beautiful Words, #4,450 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #4,800 of 17,126 for Most Satisfying to Say.
Why “benedictine” is a great word
Of or pertaining to Saint Benedict of Nursia or the monastic order he founded; also, a member of that order or the herbal liqueur its monks originated. From French bénédictin, from Latin benedictus ("blessed"), named after the 6th-century Italian saint Benedict of Nursia (Latin: Benedictus Nursiae). Recorded in English from the 17th century. Unlike "Cistercian," which denotes a later, more austere reform branch, or the generic "liqueur," any sweetened spirit, "Benedictine" evokes the original, enduring rhythm of prayer and work. It is the patient illumination of a vellum manuscript in a silent scriptorium, the solemn cadence of plainsong echoing in a stone cloister, and the complex, honeyed warmth of an amber cordial—a testament to the quiet blessing of order, faithfully maintained, as a form of lasting benediction.
Etymology
From French bénédictin, from Latin benedictus, named after Italian 6th century Saint Benedict of Nursia (Latin: Benedictus Nursiae). Recorded in English from the 17th century. By surface analysis, Benedict + -ine.
adj
- Of or pertaining to St. Benedict of Nursia.
- Of or pertaining to the Benedictine Order.
noun
- A monk or nun belonging to the order founded by Saint Benedict of Nursia.
- A type of liqueur originating from the Benedictine cloister of Fécamp in France, made from cognac together with herb and spice extracts.e.g.“Cripps differed from Partridge there, and proceeded to prove, by personal instances, that the safest thing for a man to drink was benedictine.” — 1913, Norman Lindsay, A Curate in Bohemia, Sydney: N.S.W. Bookstall Co., published 1932, page 137:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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