enshrine means to enclose (a sacred relic etc.) in a shrine or chest. It carries an Arena rating of 1856, earned across 8 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, enshrine ranks #325 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #968 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #1,206 of 17,143 for Best Fossil-Poetry Words, #2,880 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books.
enshrine is pronounced /ɪnˈʃɹaɪn/.
Why “enshrine” is a great word
To preserve or protect something with reverence, often by formal inclusion in a law or physical placement in a sacred receptacle. From the prefix en- (meaning "to put into, to make") + shrine (a sacred place or receptacle for relics), first attested in the 1580s. Unlike "record," which merely documents without reverence, or "store," which implies practical safekeeping devoid of awe, to enshrine is to elevate an object or idea into sacred permanence. It is the cool hush of a cathedral where a saint’s bone rests in a gilded reliquary, the weight of a constitutional clause inscribed in marble, and the quiet folding of a child’s first drawing into a fireproof box—each a deliberate act of consecration, a human vow to build a lit room around what must outlive us.
Etymology
From en- + shrine.
verb
- To enclose (a sacred relic etc.) in a shrine or chest.
- To preserve or cherish (something) as though in a shrine; to preserve or contain, especially with some reverence.
- To protect (an idea, ideal, or philosophy) within an official law or treaty.e.g.“Other measures, such as compensation for victims, will be enshrined in the proposed new law.”
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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