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reredos

 - 2 dictionary results

rere⋅dos

  [reer-dos, reer-i-, rair-i-]
Use reredos in a Sentence
–noun
1. a screen or a decorated part of the wall behind an altar in a church.
2. the back of a fireplace or of a medieval open hearth.
Origin:
1325–75; ME, alter. of AF areredos, equiv. to MF arere behind (see arrear ) + dos back (< L dorsum)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To reredos
rere·dos   (rîr'dŏs', rîr'ĭ-, rěr'ĭ-)   
n.  

  1. A decorative screen or facing on the wall at the back of an altar; a retable.

  2. The back of an open hearth of a fireplace.


[Middle English, from Anglo-Norman, from areredos : arere, behind (Latin ad-, ad- + Latin retrō, backward; see re- in Indo-European roots) + dos, back (from Latin dorsum).]
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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