phylactery

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• Received-Pronunciation: /fɪˈlæktəɹi/
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• Received-Pronunciation: /fɪˈlæktɹi/
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• General-American: /fəˈlæktəɹi/
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• General-American: /fəˈlæktɹi/
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• General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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• rhymes with -æktəɹi
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From Late Middle English philacterie, philaterie, filaterie (“amulet; tefilla; balderdash, idle words”), from Late Latin phylacterium (“amulet; reliquary; tefilla”), from Koine Greek φῠλᾰκτήρῐον (phŭlăktḗrĭon, “amulet; tefilla”) (used in the New Testament to translate Hebrew תפילין (“tefillin”)), from Ancient Greek φῠλᾰκτήρῐον (phŭlăktḗrĭon, “fortified outpost, watchman’s post; protection, safeguard”), from φυλακτήρ (phulaktḗr, “guard, watcher”) + -ῐον (-ĭon, suffix forming nouns). Φυλακτήρ (Phulaktḗr) is derived from φυλακ- (phulak-) (the stem of φῠλᾰ́σσω (phŭlắssō, “to guard, watch; to defend, protect”)) + -τήρ (-tḗr, suffix forming masculine agent nouns); and φῠλᾰ́σσω (phŭlắssō) from φῠ́λᾰξ (phŭ́lăx, “guard, sentry”), probably Pre-Greek. The spelling of the Middle English word was probably influenced by Middle French filatiere, philaterie, philatiere, and Old French filatiere, philatiere (“amulet; reliquary; tefilla”) (modern French phylactère), also from phylacterium. Noun sense 1.2 (“fringe which an Israelite was required to wear”) was based on the mistaken assumption that the phylacteries (noun sense 1.1) referred to in Matthew 23:5 of the Bible were the same as the fringes mentioned in Numbers 15:37–39. The modern use of "phylactery" as a term for a lich's artifact originates from Dungeons and Dragons.

87 source translations are retained for this English entry.

• Old Armenian: պահպանակ (pahpanak) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Azerbaijani: tefilin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Basque: filakteria — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Bulgarian: филактерия (filakterija) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Bulgarian: тфили́н (tfilín) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Catalan: filacteri — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Catalan: filactèria — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Chinese Mandarin: 經文護符匣 /经文护符匣 (jīngwénhùfúxiá) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Chinese Mandarin: 經匣 /经匣 (jīngxiá) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Czech: fylaktéria — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Czech: tfilin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Danish: tefillin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Dutch: fylakterion — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Finnish: tefillin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• French: phylactère — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• French: tephillin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• French: fronteau — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• German: Phylakterion — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• German: Denkzettel — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• German: Gebetsriemen — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• German: Tefillin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Greek: τεφιλίν (tefilín) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Ancient Greek: φυλακτήριον (phulaktḗrion) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Hebrew: תפילין (tfilín) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Hebrew: טוטפת (totefet) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Hindi: तावीज़ (tāvīz) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Irish: fíleachtaeir — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Irish: tefillin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Italian: filatterio — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Latin: phylactērium — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Norwegian Bokmål: fylakteri — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Norwegian Bokmål: bønneremme — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Norwegian Bokmål: tefillín — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Norwegian Nynorsk: bønereime — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Norwegian Nynorsk: tefillín — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Polish: filakterie — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Old Polish: brama — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Portuguese: filactério — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Portuguese: tefilin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Romanian: filacteră — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Russian: филакте́рия (filaktérija) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Russian: тфили́н (tfilín) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Serbo-Croatian: filakterij — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Slovak: fylaktéri — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Slovak: tfilin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Slovene: filakterija — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Slovene: tefilin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Spanish: filacteria — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Swedish: tefillin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Tamil: நாடா (nāṭā) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Turkish: tefilin — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Ukrainian: філактери (filaktery) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Ukrainian: тфілі́н (tfilín) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Welsh: phylacter — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Yiddish: תּפֿילין (tfiln) — either of two small leather cases containing scrolls with passages from the Torah
• Catalan: filacteri — synonym of amulet (cognates) — see also amulet
• Dutch: fylakterion — synonym of amulet (cognates) — see also amulet
• French: phylactère — synonym of amulet (cognates) — see also amulet
• Ancient Greek: φυλακτήριον (phulaktḗrion) — synonym of amulet (cognates) — see also amulet
• Italian: filatterio — synonym of amulet (cognates) — see also amulet
• Russian: филакте́рия (filaktérija) — synonym of amulet (cognates) — see also amulet
• Serbo-Croatian: филактерѝо̄н — synonym of amulet (cognates) — see also amulet
• Serbo-Croatian: filakterij — synonym of amulet (cognates) — see also amulet
• Serbo-Croatian: filakterìōn — synonym of amulet (cognates) — see also amulet
• Chinese Mandarin: 命匣 (mìngxiá) — enchanted object used to contain and protect the owner’s soul
• Finnish: amuletti — enchanted object used to contain and protect the owner’s soul
• Russian: филакте́рия (filaktérija) — enchanted object used to contain and protect the owner’s soul
• Serbo-Croatian: filakterij — enchanted object used to contain and protect the owner’s soul
• Catalan: filacteri — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Chinese Mandarin: 話語卷軸 /话语卷轴 (huàyǔjuànzhóu) — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Danish: skriftbånd — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Dutch: banderol — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Dutch: spreukband — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Finnish: tekstinauha — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• French: phylactère — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• German: Spruchband — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Polish: filakterie — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Portuguese: filactera — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Portuguese: filactério — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Portuguese: bandeirola — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Portuguese: pergaminho de fala — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Portuguese: voluta de fala — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Swedish: språkband — scroll with words on it depicted as emerging from a person’s mouth or held in their hands — see also banderole, speech scroll
• Russian: филакте́рия (filaktérija) — synonym of reliquary (cognates) — see also reliquary
• Serbo-Croatian: филактерѝо̄н — synonym of reliquary (cognates) — see also reliquary
• Serbo-Croatian: filakterij — synonym of reliquary (cognates) — see also reliquary
• Serbo-Croatian: filakterìōn — synonym of reliquary (cognates) — see also reliquary