altar


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altar

a table or platform used in a church service or ceremonial rite: They knelt at the altar for communion.
Not to be confused with:
alter – change: alter a will; adjust: She’ll need to alter her wedding gown to make it fit.
Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree

al·tar

 (ôl′tər)
n.
1. An elevated place or structure before which religious ceremonies may be enacted or upon which sacrifices may be offered.
2. A structure, typically a table, before which the divine offices are recited and upon which the Eucharist is celebrated in Christian churches.

[Middle English auter, from Old English altar and Old French auter, both from Latin altāre.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

altar

(ˈɔːltə)
n
1. (Ecclesiastical Terms) a raised place or structure where sacrifices are offered and religious rites performed
2. (Ecclesiastical Terms) (in Christian churches) the communion table
3. (Civil Engineering) a step in the wall of a dry dock upon which structures supporting a vessel can stand
4. lead to the altar informal to marry
[Old English, from Latin altāria (plural) altar, from altus high]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

al•tar

(ˈɔl tər)

n.
1. an elevated place or structure, as a mound or platform, at which religious rites are performed or on which sacrifices are offered to gods, ancestors, etc.
Idioms:
lead to the altar, to marry.
[before 1000; Middle English; Old English alter < Latin altāria (pl.)]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.altar - the table in Christian churches where communion is givenaltar - the table in Christian churches where communion is given
table - a piece of furniture having a smooth flat top that is usually supported by one or more vertical legs; "it was a sturdy table"
2.altar - a raised structure on which gifts or sacrifices to a god are madealtar - a raised structure on which gifts or sacrifices to a god are made
high altar - the main altar in a church
structure, construction - a thing constructed; a complex entity constructed of many parts; "the structure consisted of a series of arches"; "she wore her hair in an amazing construction of whirls and ribbons"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
Translations
مَذْبَحُ الكَنِيسَةِمَذْبَح الكَنِيسَهمَذْبَح تَقْدِيم القَرَابِين لِلآلِهَه
олтар
oltář
alter
alttari
oltar
oltár
altari
祭壇
제단
altareara
altorius
oltár
oltar
žrtvenik
altare
แท่นบูชา
bàn thờ

altar

[ˈɒltəʳ]
A. Naltar m
high altaraltar m mayor
he sacrificed all on the altar of his ambitionlo sacrificó todo en aras de su ambición
to lead a girl to the altarconducir a una chica al altar
B. CPD altar boy Nacólito m, monaguillo m
altar cloth Nsabanilla f, paño m de altar
altar rail Ncomulgatorio m
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

altar

[ˈɔːltər] n
[church] → autel m altar boy, altar cloth, altar rail, altar stone, altar table
(fig)autel m
to be sacrificed on the altar of sth → être immolé(e) sur l'autel de qchaltar boy nenfant m de chœuraltar cloth nnappe f d'autel
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

altar

nAltar m; to lead somebody to the altarjdn zum Altar führen; she was left standing at the altarsie wurde in letzter Minute sitzen gelassen (inf); to be sacrificed on the altar of pride etcauf dem Altar des Stolzes etc geopfert werden

altar

:
altar boy
nMinistrant m
altar cloth
nAltartuch nt, → Altardecke f
altarpiece
nAltarbild nt
altar rail
n, altar rails
plKommunionbank f
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

altar

[ˈɒltəʳ] naltare m
high altar → altar maggiore
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

altar

(ˈoːltə) noun
1. in some Christian churches the table on which the bread and wine are consecrated during the celebration of communion. The bride and groom stood before the priest at the altar.
2. a table etc on which offerings are made to a god.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

altar

مَذْبَحُ الكَنِيسَةِ oltář alter Altar βωμός altar alttari autel oltar altare 祭壇 제단 altaar alter ołtarz altar алтарь altare แท่นบูชา sunak bàn thờ 祭坛
Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
References in classic literature ?
Through winding corridors she led, farther and farther into the remoter precincts of the temple, until they came to a great chamber in the center of which stood an altar. Then it was that Tarzan translated the strange ceremony that had preceded his introduction into this holy of holies.
The ceremony was to be solemnized according to the Episcopalian forms, and in open church, with a degree of publicity that attracted many spectators, who occupied the front seats of the galleries, and the pews near the altar and along the broad aisle.
Under an altar by the door was a pair of stone stocks for human legs.
"Under the altar in the chapel, sir," answered Thomas.
Just before him stood a stone altar, stained with rusty-brown discolorations.
And Leto sware the great oath of the gods: `Now hear this, Earth and wide Heaven above, and dropping water of Styx (this is the strongest and most awful oath for the blessed gods), surely Phoebus shall have here his fragrant altar and precinct, and you he shall honour above all.'
Methinks it is no great stretch of generosity to allow us lambs for the altar of the Lord, receiving in lieu thereof thirty silver shekels per head !"
On the walls were rosaries, medals, a number of Holy Virgins, and a holy-water basin made out of a cocoanut; on the bureau, which was covered with a napkin like an altar, stood the box of shells that Victor had given her; also a watering-can and a balloon, writing-books, the engraved geography and a pair of shoes; on the nail which held the mirror, hung Virginia's little plush hat!
The chief were those who from the Pit of Hell Roaming to seek their prey on earth, durst fix Their Seats long after next the Seat of God, Their Altars by his Altar, Gods ador'd Among the Nations round, and durst abide JEHOVAH thundring out of SION, thron'd Between the Cherubim; yea, often plac'd Within his Sanctuary it self their Shrines, Abominations; and with cursed things His holy Rites, and solemn Feasts profan'd, And with their darkness durst affront his light.
I frequently passed the little temples reposing in the shadows of the taboo groves and beheld the offerings--mouldy fruit spread out upon a rude altar, or hanging in half-decayed baskets around some uncouth jolly-looking image; I was present during the continuance of the festival; I daily beheld the grinning idols marshalled rank and file in the Hoolah Hoolah ground, and was often in the habit of meeting those whom I supposed to be the priests.
While hovering near an altar, on which some villagers were sacrificing a goat, she suddenly seized a piece of the flesh, and carried it, along with a burning cinder, to her nest.
At one side of the table was a small carpet with various figures worked upon it, at the other was something resembling an altar on which lay a Testament and a skull.