One entry found for rosary.

Main Entry: ro·sa·ry
Pronunciation: rz-(-)r
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -ries
Etymology: from Latin rosarium "rosary prayers, rosary beads," from earlier rosarium "rose garden," derived from rosa "rose"
1 often capitalized : a Roman Catholic devotion consisting of meditation on usually five sacred mysteries during recitation of five decades of Hail Marys of which each is preceded by the Lord's Prayer and followed by the Gloria Patri
2 : a string of beads used in counting prayers and especially those of the Roman Catholic rosary
Word History Rosary comes from the Latin word rosarium, which at first meant "a rose garden." It was later used to refer to a series of prayers, thought of perhaps as a garden of prayers. This second meaning of rosarium may also have developed partly because in Christianity the rose is associated with Mary, the mother of Jesus, and the rose garden with paradise. Rosarium in time came to be used not only for the prayers themselves but also for the string of beads used in counting them.

Pronunciation Symbols