teraphim means synonym of teraph. It carries an Arena rating of 1313, earned across 25 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, teraphim ranks #1,342 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words, #3,183 of 17,128 for Most Ponderous Words, #3,214 of 17,104 for Most Storied Words, #3,366 of 17,131 for Scariest Words.
teraphim is pronounced /ˈtɛɹəfɪm/.
Why “teraphim” is a great word
TERAPHIM — [Noun] Small household idols or figurines, used for divination and domestic worship in ancient Semitic cultures. From ecclesiastical Latin *theraphim*, from Ancient Greek θεραφίν (*theraphín*), from Hebrew תְּרָפִים (*t'rafím*, “household gods”). First attested in English c. 1350–1400. Unlike an *eidolon* (which suggests an insubstantial phantom) or the Roman *lares* (which were sanctioned hearth guardians), teraphim were tangible, often clandestine instruments of private ritual. They are the carved figure hidden in the fold of a tent, the smooth stone consulted by lamplight, the ancestral face felt in the dark—a testament to the intimate, stubborn hunger for a god one can hold, and hide.
Etymology
From ecclesiastical Latin theraphim, from Ancient Greek θεραφίν (theraphín), from Hebrew תְּרָפִים (t'rafím, “household gods”).
noun
- Synonym of teraph.e.g.“And the priest's heart was glad, and he took the ephod, and the teraphim, and the graven image, and went in the midst of the people” — 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Judges 18:20:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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