Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Dedicated to or set apart for the worship of a deity.
- adj. Worthy of religious veneration: the sacred teachings of the Buddha.
- adj. Made or declared holy: sacred bread and wine.
- adj. Dedicated or devoted exclusively to a single use, purpose, or person: sacred to the memory of her sister; a private office sacred to the President.
- adj. Worthy of respect; venerable.
- adj. Of or relating to religious objects, rites, or practices.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Hallowed, consecrated, or made holy by association with divinity or divine things, or by solemn religious ceremony or sanction; set apart, dedicated, or appropriated to holy or religious purposes or service; regarded as holy or under divine protection: as, a sacred place; a sacred day; sacred service; the sacred lotus.
- Devoted, dedicated, or consecrated with pious or filial intent: with to: as, a monument sacred to the memory of some one.
- Devoted to destruction or infamy; execrable; accursed; infamous.
- Of or pertaining to religion or divine things; relating to the service or will of the deity: opposed to secular and profane: as, sacred music; sacred history.
- Entitled to consideration, respect, or reverence; not to be thoughtlessly treated or intruded upon; venerable.
- Hence To be kept inviolate; not to be violated, profaned, or made common; inviolate.
- Not amenable to punishment; enjoying immunity: as, the king's person is sacred.
- Synonyms Sacred, Holy. Holy is stronger and more absolute than any word of cognate meaning. That which is sacred may derive its sanction from man; that which is holy has its sanctity directly from God or as connected with him. Hence we speak of the Holy Bible, and the sacred writings of the Hindus. He who is holy is absolutely or essentially free from sin; sacred is not a word of personal character. The opposite of holy is sinful or wicked; that of sacred is secular, profane, or common.
Wiktionary
- adj. Set apart by solemn religious ceremony; especially, in a good sense, made holy; set apart to religious use; consecrated; not profane or common; as, a sacred place; a sacred day; sacred service.
- adj. Relating to religion, or to the services of religion; not secular; religious; as, sacred history.
- adj. Designated or exalted by a divine sanction; possessing the highest title to obedience, honor, reverence, or veneration; entitled to extreme reverence; venerable.
- adj. Hence, not to be profaned or violated; inviolable.
- adj. Consecrated; dedicated; devoted; -- with to.
- adj. Solemnly devoted, in a bad sense, as to evil, vengeance, curse, or the like; accursed; baleful.
- v. simple past tense and past participle of sacre.
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Set apart by solemn religious ceremony; especially, in a good sense, made holy; set apart to religious use; consecrated; not profane or common.
- adj. Relating to religion, or to the services of religion; not secular; religious.
- adj. Designated or exalted by a divine sanction; possessing the highest title to obedience, honor, reverence, or veneration; entitled to extreme reverence; venerable.
- adj. Hence, not to be profaned or violated; inviolable.
- adj. Consecrated; dedicated; devoted; -- with
to . - adj. Solemnly devoted, in a bad sense, as to evil, vengeance, curse, or the like; accursed; baleful.
WordNet 3.0
- adj. (often followed by `to') devoted exclusively to a single use or purpose or person
- adj. worthy of religious veneration
- adj. worthy of respect or dedication
- adj. made or declared or believed to be holy; devoted to a deity or some religious ceremony or use
- adj. concerned with religion or religious purposes
Etymologies
- Middle English, past participle of sacren, to consecrate, from Old French sacrer, from Latin sacrāre, from sacer, sacr-, sacred; see sak- in Indo-European roots.
Examples
“{469} _Homa_, or sacred tree, and the _sacred tree of the Hindus_; and the same may yet be found in the _British oak_.”
“A man may keep his friendship sacred, because promises of friendship are very awful ties; but, methinks, he cannot, but in a burlesque sense, be said to keep his ease _sacred_.”
“But the new constitution will see his status changed slightly, with the term "sacred" disappearing but the monarch still remaining "inviolable", the king said.”
The Guardian: Morocco's king bows to pressure and allows reform
“This is opposed, of course, to how Catholic Tradition understands the term sacred history, namely that part of actual history which is recorded by the Bible.”
“Since 2000, I have done what I call my sacred practice every morning.”
“Parents can also set rules about where digital media is used in the household, establishing what she calls "sacred spaces" in the kitchen or bedrooms where texting or emailing is banned.”
The Guardian: Aspen Ideas Festival: 'Put your damn phone down' say social media gurus
“Sacrifice comes from the Latin sacer, from which we derive the word "sacred.”
The Huffington Post: Rabbi Josh Feigelson: What Would You Sacrifice To Repair The World?
“Last March, some Italian women came out into the open after Pope Benedict spoke of what he called the sacred value of celibacy.”
“HOLZER: He was every bit as praiseworthy of what he called the sacred effort of the second inaugural, when Lincoln conceded that Northerners and Southerners were equally responsible for the sin of slavery and deserved punishment and suffering.”
Mark Green: 7 Days in America: Lesson from Lincoln's Transition & Inaugural
“COHEN: The group advocates eating what they call sacred foods such as mushrooms.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘sacred’.
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Interesting words
A list of words that are odd or words that I have looked up.
concupiscence, brize, scree, scoria, forestaff, spanaemia, valetudinarianism, distasture, pyrethrum, laudanum, gentian, bicameral and 1128 more...
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Imbible Code ✞
Christian word branding; common English word-associatives connected to Bible terminology or scripture.
I also have a general Bible-word list.god, father, son, trinity, sacrament, knowledge, serpent, flood, evil, good, spirit, revelation and 118 more...
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religion
who is this god person, anyway? (--Douglas Adams)
sachristy, vestry, diocese, papal, cardinal, pope, polygamy, seven, father, chaplain, vestments, blessing and 227 more...
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Happy Warm Joyful Words
fortuitous, auspicious, propitious, divine, sacred, cherish, grace, picnic, sunshine, felicity, harmony, serenity

Louises Maddy not being what she seemed would be a uniquely dismal disappointment, the sort of thing that makes you say, Jesus, is nothing sacred? From "The Last Werewolf" by Glen Duncan. Mar 21, 2012