Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The region of the head or skull behind the eye and forehead, above and mostly in front of the ear.
  • noun In entomology, the posterior part of the gena, or that immediately beneath the eye.
  • noun One of the bars sometimes added to the ends of spectacle-bows to give them a firmer hold on the head of the wearer. See spectacle, 5.
  • noun An ornament worn at the side of the head or covering the side of the head, mentioned in the fifteenth century as apparently sometimes of needlework, sometimes set with jewels.
  • noun An edifice dedicated to the service of a deity or deities, and connected with a system of worship.
  • noun The religious edifice of the Jews in Jerusalem.
  • noun An edifice erected as a place of public worship; a church; in France, specifically, a Protestant church, as distinguished from a Roman Catholic place of worship, which alone is usually spoken of as a church (église).
  • noun Metaphorically, any place in which the divine presence specially resides.
  • noun [capitalized] The name of two semi-monastic establishments of the middle ages, one in London, the other in Paris, occupied by the Knights Templars.
  • noun An inn of court.
  • To build a temple for; appropriate a temple to; inclose in a temple.
  • noun An attachment to a loom for keeping the cloth stretched, while the reed beats the threads into place after each throw of the shuttle. One form is automatic, releasing the cloth and then stretching it after each stroke of the lay.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A place or edifice dedicated to the worship of some deity.
  • noun (Jewish Antiq.) The edifice erected at Jerusalem for the worship of Jehovah.
  • noun Hence, among Christians, an edifice erected as a place of public worship; a church.
  • noun Fig.: Any place in which the divine presence specially resides.
  • noun (Mormon Ch.) A building dedicated to the administration of ordinances.
  • noun A local organization of Odd Fellows.
  • noun two buildings, or ranges of buildings, occupied by two inns of court in London, on the site of a monastic establishment of the Knights Templars, called the Temple.
  • transitive verb rare To build a temple for; to appropriate a temple to.
  • noun (Anat.) The space, on either side of the head, back of the eye and forehead, above the zygomatic arch and in front of the ear.
  • noun One of the side bars of a pair of spectacles, jointed to the bows, and passing one on either side of the head to hold the spectacles in place.
  • noun (Weaving) A contrivence used in a loom for keeping the web stretched transversely.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A building for worship.
  • noun often capitalized The Jewish temple of Jerusalem, first built by Solomon.
  • noun Something regarded as holding religious presence.
  • noun Something of importance; something attended to.
  • noun obsolete A body.
  • noun Hands held together with forefingers outstretched and touching pad to pad, with the rest of the fingers clasped.
  • verb transitive To build a temple for; to appropriate a temple to.
  • noun anatomy The slightly flatter region, on either side of the head, back of the eye and forehead, above the zygomatic arch and in front of the ear.
  • noun ophthalmology Either of the sidepieces on a set of spectacles, extending backwards from the hinge toward the ears and, usually, turning down around them.
  • noun weaving A contrivance used in a loom for keeping the web stretched transversely.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun place of worship consisting of an edifice for the worship of a deity
  • noun the flat area on either side of the forehead
  • noun (Judaism) the place of worship for a Jewish congregation
  • noun an edifice devoted to special or exalted purposes

Etymologies

Sorry, no etymologies found.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word temple.

Examples

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • "the thin stretch of skin at the side of the forehead."

    August 1, 2009

  • At my school, this is the affectionate nickname for the gymnasium.

    January 23, 2010