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desecration

 - 4 dictionary results

des⋅e⋅crate

  [des-i-kreyt]
Use desecration in a Sentence
–verb (used with object), -crat⋅ed, -crat⋅ing.
1. to divest of sacred or hallowed character or office.
2. to divert from a sacred to a profane use or purpose.
3. to treat with sacrilege; profane.
Origin:
1665–75; de- + -secrate, modeled on consecrate

Related forms:
des⋅e⋅crat⋅er, des⋅e⋅cra⋅tor, noun
des⋅e⋅cra⋅tion, noun

Synonyms:
3. defile, violate, dishonor, pollute, outrage.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To desecration
des·e·crate   (děs'ĭ-krāt')   
tr.v.   des·e·crat·ed, des·e·crat·ing, des·e·crates
To violate the sacredness of; profane.

[de- + (con)secrate.]
des'e·crat'er, des'e·cra'tor n., des'e·cra'tion n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

desecrate 
1674, formed from de- "do the opposite of" + (con)secrate. O.Fr. had dessacrer "to profane," and there is a similar formation in It.; but L. desecrare meant "to make holy," with de- in this case having a completive sense.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia

desecration

originally, the theft of something sacred; as early as the 1st century BC, however, the Latin term for sacrilege came to mean any injury, violation, or profanation of sacred things. Legal punishment for such acts was already sanctioned, in the Levitical code of ancient Israel. The Israelites had extensive rules to safeguard what was holy or consecrated, violation of which (especially of temple laws) often led to mob violence.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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