sotah

Etymology

Borrowed from Hebrew סוֹטָה (“adulteress”).

Why this word is great

SOTAH — [Noun] A ritual ordeal in Jewish law where a woman suspected of adultery drinks priest-cursed bitter liquid to determine her guilt or innocence. Borrowed from Hebrew סוֹטָה (sotah, "adulteress"). Unlike "adulteress" (a general term for a woman who strays) or "ordeal" (a broad test of innocence), sotah is a precise, sacred violence—a trial by thirst. It is the dust of the temple floor stirred into water, the ink of curses dissolving on parchment, the silent trembling of hands as the cup is lifted. A ritual that demands proof of purity by drinking doubt itself.

noun

An ordeal of a woman drinking priest-cursed bitter liquid to determine if she has committed adultery.“The ordeal of the sotah worked only in an age when people believed in its power to expose the guilty and exonerate the innocent.”