relic

English

A Christian relic (a bone of a saint)

Wikipedia

Alternative forms

• relick (archaic)
• relique

Etymology

From Middle English, from Old French, from Latin reliquiae (“remains, relics”), from relinquō (“I leave behind, abandon, relinquish”), from re- + linquō (“I leave, quit, forsake, depart from”).

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈɹɛlɪk/

Noun

relic (plural relics)

1. That which remains; that which is left after loss or decay; a remaining portion.
2. Something old kept for sentimental reasons.
3. (religion) A part of the body of a saint, or an ancient religious object, kept for veneration.

Usage notes

By comparison with synonyms, relic emphasizes age, and to some degree value – a “relic of a lost civilization”.

Synonyms

• (that which remains): remnant, remainder, residue

Derived terms

• Relic Sunday

Related terms

• delict
• delinquent
• derelict
• relict
• relinquish
• reliquary

Translations

that which remains

• Armenian: մնացորդ (hy) (mnac’ord) 
• Bashkir: ҡомартҡы (ba) (qomartqï) 
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 遺跡 (cmn), 遗迹 (cmn) (yíjì), 遺物 (cmn), 遗物 (cmn) (yíwù)

• Finnish: jäännökset (fi) pl
• Hebrew: שריד (he) (sarid) m
• Japanese: 遺物 (ja) (いぶつ, ibutsu), 遺跡 (ja) (いせき, iseki)
• Russian: останки (ru) (ostánki) m pl 

thing kept for sentimental reasons

• Bashkir: ҡомартҡы (ba) (qomartqï) 
• Finnish: muisto (fi), muistoesine (fi)
• German: Relikt (de) m
• Hungarian: emlék (hu)

• Italian: ricordo (it) m, avanzo (it) m
• Portuguese: relíquia m
• Russian: реликвия (ru) (relíkvija) f , реликт (ru) (relíkt) m 

part of a body or an object of religious significance

• Armenian: մասունք (hy) (masunk’) 
• Czech: relikvie (cs) f
• Finnish: pyhäinjäännös (fi), reliikki (fi)
• French: relique (fr)
• German: Reliquie (de) f
• Hungarian: ereklye (hu), relikvia (hu)

• Italian: cimelio (it) m, reliquia (it) f
• Old Portuguese: relica
• Portuguese: relíquia m
• Russian: мощи (ru) (móšči) m pl 
• Slovene: relikvija (sl) f
• Spanish: reliquia (es) f

External links

• relic in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• relic in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• relic at OneLook Dictionary Search