reliquary
REL-ih-kwer-ee · noun
Proto-Indo-EuropeanLatinLate LatinMiddle FrenchEnglish
Origin
Borrowed from Middle French reliquaire, from Late Latin reliquiarium, from Latin rēliquia ("a relic"), the noun use of reliquus ("left behind"), itself from relinquō ("to relinquish"), formed from re- ("again") and linquō ("to leave"), tracing back to the Proto-Indo-European root *leykʷ-.
Journey
The word grew directly from the Latin idea of something 'left behind' — a relic — into the specific noun for the vessel made to hold such remains.
Related words
It shares its Latin root with relinquish, since both descend from relinquō, 'to leave behind.'
More words
Nearby, A–Z