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mystery

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mys⋅ter⋅y

1  [mis-tuh-ree, -tree]
Use mystery in a Sentence
–noun, plural -ter⋅ies.
1. anything that is kept secret or remains unexplained or unknown: the mysteries of nature.
2. any affair, thing, or person that presents features or qualities so obscure as to arouse curiosity or speculation: The masked guest is an absolute mystery to everyone.
3. a novel, short story, play, or film whose plot involves a crime or other event that remains puzzlingly unsettled until the very end: a mystery by Agatha Christie.
4. obscure, puzzling, or mysterious quality or character: the mystery of Mona Lisa's smile.
5. any truth that is unknowable except by divine revelation.
6. (in the Christian religion)
a. a sacramental rite.
b. the Eucharist.
7. an incident or scene in connection with the life of Christ, regarded as of special significance: the mysteries of the Passion.
8. any of the 15 events in the lives of Christ and the Virgin Mary meditated upon during the recitation of the rosary.
9. mysteries,
a. ancient religions that admitted candidates by secret rites and rituals the meaning of which was known only to initiated worshipers.
b. any rites or secrets known only to those initiated: the mysteries of Freemasonry.
c. (in the Christian religion) the Eucharistic elements.
10. mystery play.
Origin:
1275–1325; ME mysterie < L mystērium < Gk mystrion, equiv. to mýs(tēs) (see mystic ) + -tērion n. suffix

Synonyms:
4. puzzle, problem, secret, riddle.
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mys⋅ter⋅y

2  [mis-tuh-ree]
–noun, plural -ter⋅ies. Archaic.
1. a craft or trade.
2. a guild, as of merchants.
Origin:
1325–75; ME mistery < ML misterium, var. of L ministerium ministry
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To mystery
mys·ter·y 1   (mĭs'tə-rē)   
n.   pl. mys·ter·ies

  1. One that is not fully understood or that baffles or eludes the understanding; an enigma: How he got in is a mystery.

  2. One whose identity is unknown and who arouses curiosity: The woman in the photograph is a mystery.

  3. A mysterious character or quality: a landscape with mystery and charm.

  4. A work of fiction, a drama, or a film dealing with a puzzling crime.

  5. The skills, lore, or practices that are peculiar to a particular activity or group and are regarded as the special province of initiates. Often used in the plural: the mysteries of Freemasonry; the mysteries of cooking game.

  6. A religious truth that is incomprehensible to reason and knowable only through divine revelation.

    1. An incident from the life of Jesus, especially the Incarnation, Passion, Crucifixion, or Resurrection, of particular importance for redemption.

    2. One of the 15 incidents from the lives of Jesus or the Blessed Virgin Mary, such as the Annunciation or the Ascension, serving in Roman Catholicism as the subject of meditation during recitation of the rosary.

    3. also Mystery One of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist.

    4. mysteries The consecrated elements of the Eucharist.

    5. A religious cult practicing secret rites to which only initiates are admitted.

    6. A secret rite of such a cult.

    1. also Mystery One of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist.

    2. mysteries The consecrated elements of the Eucharist.

    3. A religious cult practicing secret rites to which only initiates are admitted.

    4. A secret rite of such a cult.

    1. A religious cult practicing secret rites to which only initiates are admitted.

    2. A secret rite of such a cult.


[Middle English misterie, from Latin mystērium, from Greek mustērion, secret rite, from mustēs, an initiate, from mūein, to close the eyes, initiate.]
mys·ter·y 2   (mĭs'tə-rē)   
n.   pl. mys·ter·ies

  1. Archaic A trade or an occupation.

  2. Archaic A guild, as of merchants or artisans.

  3. A mystery play.


[Middle English misterie, service, craft, from Medieval Latin misterium, craft-guild, from Late Latin, alteration of Latin ministerium, occupation, from minister, assistant, servant; see mei-2 in Indo-European roots.]
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

mystery  (1)
c.1315, in a theological sense, "religious truth via divine revelation, mystical presence of God," from Anglo-Fr. *misterie (O.Fr. mistere), from L. mysterium, from Gk. mysterion (usually in pl. mysteria) "secret rite or doctrine," from mystes "one who has been initiated," from myein "to close, shut," perhaps referring to the lips (in secrecy) or to the eyes (only initiates were allowed to see the sacred rites). The Gk. word was used in Septuagint for "secret counsel of God," translated in Vulgate as sacramentum. Non-theological use in English, "a hidden or secret thing," is from c.1300. In ref. to the ancient rites of Greece, Egypt, etc. it is attested from 1643. Meaning "detective story" first recorded in Eng. 1908.

mystery  (2)
"handicraft, trade, art," c.1375, from M.L. misterium, alt. of L. ministerium "service, occupation, office, ministry" (see ministry), influenced in form by M.L. mysterium (see mystery (1)) and in sense by maistrie "mastery." Now only in mystery play, in ref. to the medieval performances, which often were staged by members of craft guilds. The two senses of mystery formed a common pun in (secular) Tudor theater.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Bible Dictionary

Mystery

the calling of the Gentiles into the Christian Church, so designated (Eph. 1:9, 10; 3:8-11; Col. 1:25-27); a truth undiscoverable except by revelation, long hid, now made manifest. The resurrection of the dead (1 Cor. 15:51), and other doctrines which need to be explained but which cannot be fully understood by finite intelligence (Matt. 13:11; Rom. 11:25; 1 Cor. 13:2); the union between Christ and his people symbolized by the marriage union (Eph. 5:31, 32; comp. 6:19); the seven stars and the seven candlesticks (Rev. 1:20); and the woman clothed in scarlet (17:7), are also in this sense mysteries. The anti-Christian power working in his day is called by the apostle (2 Thess. 2:7) the "mystery of iniquity."

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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