ROSARIES
Noun
rosaries
plural of rosary
Source: Wiktionary
ROSARY
Ro"sa*ry, n.; pl. Rosaries. Etym: [LL. rosarium a string of beads, L.
rosarium a place planted with roses, rosa a rose: cf. F. rosaire. See
Rose.]
1. A bed of roses, or place where roses grow. "Thick rosaries of
scented thorn." Tennyson.
2. (R.C.Ch.)
Definition: A series of prayers (see Note below) arranged to be recited in
order, on beads; also, a string of beads by which the prayers are
counted.
His idolized book, and the whole rosary of his prayers. Milton.
Note: A rosary consists of fifteen decades. Each decade contains ten
Ave Marias marked by small beads, preceded by a Paternoster, marked
by a larger bead, and concluded by a Gloria Patri. Five decades make
a chaplet, a third part of the rosary. Bp. Fitzpatrick.
3. A chapelet; a garland; a series or collection, as of beautiful
thoughts or of literary selections.
Every day propound to yourself a rosary or chaplet of good works to
present to God at night. Jer. Taylor.
4. A coin bearing the figure of a rose, fraudulently circulated in
Ireland in the 13th century for a penny. Rosary shell (Zoöl.), any
marine gastropod shell of the genus Monodonta. They are top-shaped,
bright-colored and pearly.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition