tabernacle

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈtæbənækl̩/ (UK); /ˈtæbɚnækl̩/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English tabernacle, borrowed from Old French tabernacle,^[2][3][4][5] from Late Latin tabernāculum (“tent”),^{[2][3][4][5][6]} a diminutive of Latin taberna (“hut, booth”).^{[2][3][4][5][6]} It is related to tavern.^[2][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The portable sanctuary carried by the Israelites in the wilderness (c. 1250).^[7][3][4]

Semantic evolution

The word passed by the late 14th century to the Temple in Jerusalem, which continued the functions of the tabernacle,^[4][7] and in biblical language to any dwelling place, including the human body as the temporary home of the soul.^[4][7] By the late 15th century it named a receptacle for the Eucharist.^[4] The sense of a house of worship, often a temporary one or one distinct from a church, dates from the 1690s,^[4][3] especially of Nonconformist chapels (1768).^[4] The Jewish Feast of Tabernacles commemorates the Israelites' life in tents.^[7][4]

Timeline

• c. 1250 – the Israelites' portable sanctuary.^[7][3][4]
• 1382 – a temporary dwelling, and Feast of Tabernacles.^[7]
• 1388 – the Temple in Jerusalem.^[7]
• late 15th century – a receptacle for the Eucharist.^[4]
• 1690s – a house of worship.^[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. (often capitalized) The portable sanctuary in which the Israelites carried the Ark of the Covenant through the wilderness; also, the Jewish Temple.
2. An ornamental box on a church altar containing the consecrated host of the Eucharist.
3. A place of worship, especially a large building or tent for evangelistic meetings.
4. A canopied niche for a statue or relic.
5. (archaic) A temporary dwelling; a tent or hut.

Verb

1. To dwell for a time; to take up temporary residence.

Word family

• tabernacular

Related words

• tavern
• sanctuary
• temple

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
7. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press