propitiation means the act of propitiating; placation, atonement, similar to expiation but also involving the appeasement of anger. It carries an Arena rating of 1702, earned across 10 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, propitiation ranks #125 of 17,128 for Most Ponderous Words, #1,988 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words, #2,508 of 17,126 for Most Satisfying to Say, #2,689 of 17,131 for Scariest Words.
Why “propitiation” is a great word
The act of appeasing or making favorably inclined, especially a deity, to secure forgiveness or avert anger. From Middle English propiciacion, from Anglo-Norman propiciatiun and Middle French propiciation, from Latin propitiātiōn- (stem of propitiātiō), from propitiāre ('to appease, propitiate'). Unlike expiation, which focuses on the reparation for a wrong itself, or conciliation, which suggests a mutual restoration of peace, propitiation is the specific, often desperate, gesture aimed at a wrathful superior power. It is the scent of burnt offerings curling into a silent sky, the precise weight of a sacrificial lamb on a cold altar stone, and the whispered prayer in a language one hopes the gods still understand—a transaction of fear conducted in the shadow of an overwhelming presence, a ritual born from the profound human ache to feel secure in a capricious universe.
Etymology
From Middle English propiciacion, propiciacioun, from Anglo-Norman propiciatiun, Middle French propiciation, propitiation, and their etymon Latin propitiātiō (stem propitiātiōn-). By surface analysis, propitiate + -ion.
noun
- The act of propitiating; placation, atonement, similar to expiation but also involving the appeasement of anger.e.g.“Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God” — 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Romans 3:25:
- The death of Christ as a basis for the forgiveness of sin.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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