relic

English

A Christian relic (a bone of a saint)

Wikipedia

Alternative forms

• relick (archaic)
• relique

Etymology

From Middle English, from Old French, from Latin reliquiae (“remains, relics”), from relinquō (“I leave behind, abandon, relinquish”), from re- + linquō (“I leave, quit, forsake, depart from”).

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈɹɛlɪk/

Noun

relic (plural relics)

1. That which remains; that which is left after loss or decay; a remaining portion.
2. Something old kept for sentimental reasons.
3. (religion) A part of the body of a saint, or an ancient religious object, kept for veneration.

Usage notes

By comparison with synonyms, relic emphasizes age, and to some degree value – a “relic of a lost civilization”.

Synonyms

• (that which remains): remnant, remainder, residue

Related terms

• delict
• delinquency
• delinquent
• derelict
• relict
• relinquish
• reliquary

Translations

that which remains

Armenian: մնացորդ (hy) (mnac’ord) Finnish: jäännökset (fi) pl.

Hebrew: שריד (he) (sarid) m. Russian: останки (ru)

thing kept for sentimental reasons

Finnish: muisto (fi), muistoesine (fi) German: Relikt (de) m. Hungarian: emlék (hu)

Italian: ricordo (it) m., avanzo (it) m. Portuguese: relíquia m. Russian: реликвия (ru) f.

part of a body or an object of religious significance

Armenian: մասունք (hy) (masunk’) Czech: relikvie (cs) f. Finnish: pyhäinjäännös (fi), reliikki (fi) French: relique (fr) German: Reliquie (de) f. Hungarian: ereklye (hu), relikvia (hu)

Italian: cimelio (it) m., reliquia (it) f. Portuguese: relíquia m. Russian: мощи (ru) Slovene: relikvija (sl) f. Spanish: reliquia (es) f.

External links

• relic in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• relic in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• relic at OneLook Dictionary Search