DictionaryAI

sacred

adjective
SAY-krid/ˈseɪkɹɪd/

4 meanings of sacred

Practice

  1. 1
    adjective
    Holy; set apart for or dedicated to a god or religious purpose (often 'sacred to' a particular deity), and therefore deserving deep reverence.

    Ancient rulers presented their authority as sacred, demanding reverence from every subject.

    The temple on the hill is sacred to the goddess of the harvest.

    Similarholy, hallowed, sanctified, divine, blessed

    Note

    Shakespeare's Richard II speaks of "our sacred blood," meaning royal: the word could attach to a king's person as readily as to a god. Unlike the classifying sense, this one admits degrees. Abraham Cowley's "the two most sacred names of earth and heaven" (1656) ranks poet and saint.

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • King Richard speaks the words "our sacred blood" in Shakespeare's Richard II, referring to his royal blood. folger.edu
    • Abraham Cowley's quotation describes poet and saint as "the two most sacred names of earth and heaven." rpo.library.utoronto.ca
    • Cowley's quoted poem was first published in 1656. celm.folger.edu
  2. 2
    adjective
    Relating to religion or the spiritual, as opposed to secular or material matters.

    Scholars distinguish sacred literature from the secular poetry of the same period.

    The composer wrote both sacred works for the church and operas for the stage.

    UsageOften paired with secular: sacred and secular music.

    Similarreligious, spiritual, devotional

    Oppositesecular, profane

    Note

    It labels a kind of thing rather than its holiness. A sacred song need not be consecrated, only written for worship or on religious themes. Milton's "Smit with the love of sacred song" in Paradise Lost (1667) is the classic instance.

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • "Smit with the love of sacred song" occurs in John Milton's Paradise Lost, in the narrator's invocation in Book III. gutenberg.org
    • Paradise Lost was first published in 1667. christs.cam.ac.uk
  3. 3
    must be protectedadjective
    Too important to be violated or treated with disrespect; inviolable.

    In their tradition, a guest's safety is sacred and may never be betrayed.

    The treaty treated the border as sacred, not to be crossed by either army.

    UsageCommon in hold something sacred and is nothing sacred?, said of rights, promises and traditions.

    Similarinviolable, sacrosanct

    Note

    The sense that sits beside sacrosanct and inviolable, and the one most easily carried beyond religion. Dryden's "Secrets of marriage still are sacred held" shows the typical frame, hold something sacred. Christian Smith's The Sacred Project of American Sociology (2014) applies it to an academic discipline's aims. Used of secrets, promises or rights, it implies that breaking them would be a kind of profanation.

    Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • The quotation is by John Dryden; it appears in Aureng-Zebe, spoken by the character Aureng-Zebe. gutenberg.org
    • Christian Smith wrote The Sacred Project of American Sociology, first published in 2014. api.pageplace.de
    • Smith applies the idea of the sacred to sociology's disciplinary commitments and aims. christiansmith.nd.edu

Less common meaning

  1. 4
    adjectivearchaic
    Solemnly given over to evil, vengeance, or a curse; accursed and baleful.
    But, to destruction sacred and devote.
    1667, John Milton, Paradise Lost
    Note

    Here the setting-apart runs the other way: something is solemnly handed over not to a god but to ruin. Milton's Paradise Lost (1667) has it in "to destruction sacred and devote," and the construction is the clue: sacred to plus a noun of doom. It is the dark twin of the "holy" sense, built on the same participle of Middle English sacren, "to hallow."

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • John Milton wrote Paradise Lost, first published in 1667. gutenberg.org
    • The quoted words occur in Paradise Lost, Book III, in God's speech. gutenberg.org
    • Both senses derive from the Middle English past participle of sacren, meaning to make holy or hallow. en.wiktionary.org

Practice

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Origin

From Middle English sacred (also isacred), the past participle of sacren or sakeren, meaning 'to make holy' or 'hallow', formed from sacre plus the ending -ed.

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 3 facts