Standard Lemma guide

relic

adj · noun · verb · 8 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈɹɛlɪk/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: R EH1 L IH0 K Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Pertaining to the Big Bang.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

That which remains; that which is left after loss or decay; a remaining portion.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • 1797, Ann Radcliffe, The Italian, London: T. Cadell Jun. & W. Davies, Volume 2, Chapter 6, p. 184, It appeared, from [...] the ruins scattered distantly along its skirts, to be a part of the city entirely abandoned by the modern inhabitants to the reliques of its former grandeur.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: remnant, remainder, residue, lave, leavings, leftover, ort, relic, remains, remanent, residuum, rest, rump

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Something old and outdated, possibly kept for sentimental reasons.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A part of the body of a saint, or an ancient religious object, kept for veneration.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: lifestyle, religion

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: halidom

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A particle or entity that has existed since the Big Bang.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: astronomy, cosmology, natural-sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

verb

Meaning 6

To cause (an object) to appear old or worn, to distress.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: often, transitive, uncommon

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

something of sentimental value

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: keepsake, souvenir, token

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: object, physical object

Narrower terms: love-token, party favor, party favour, favor, favour

8

noun

Meaning 8

an antiquity that has survived from the distant past

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: antiquity

Narrower terms: archeological remains

History

Etymology

From Middle English relik et al., from Old French relique, from Latin reliquiae (“remains, relics”), from relinquō (“to leave behind, abandon, relinquish”), from re- + linquō (“to leave, quit, forsake, depart from”). Doublet of relict, derelict, and relinquish.

Across languages

Translations

106 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: أَثَر (ʔaṯar) — that which remains
  • Armenian: մնացորդ (mnacʻord) — that which remains
  • Armenian: նշխար (nšxar) — that which remains
  • Bashkir: ҡомартҡы (qomartqı) — that which remains
  • Bulgarian: останка (ostanka) — that which remains
  • Catalan: relíquia — that which remains
  • Chinese Mandarin: 遺跡 /遗迹 (yíjì) — that which remains
  • Chinese Mandarin: 遺物 /遗物 (yíwù) — that which remains
  • Czech: pozůstatek — that which remains
  • Czech: relikt — that which remains
  • Finnish: jäännökset — that which remains
  • French: reliquat — that which remains
  • Greek: απομεινάρι (apomeinári) — that which remains
  • Ancient Greek: ἀπομεινάριον (apomeinárion) — that which remains
  • Hebrew: שָׂרִיד (saríd) — that which remains
  • Hungarian: maradvány — that which remains
  • Hungarian: maradék — that which remains
  • Indonesian: relik — that which remains
  • Indonesian: peninggalan — that which remains
  • Japanese: 遺物 (ibutsu) — that which remains
  • Japanese: 遺跡 (iseki) — that which remains
  • Korean: 유물 (yumul) — that which remains
  • Korean: 유적 (yujeok) — that which remains
  • Macedonian: о́станка (óstanka) — that which remains
  • Middle English: relik — that which remains
  • Norwegian Bokmål: levning — that which remains
  • Russian: оста́нки (ostánki) — that which remains
  • Spanish: reliquia — that which remains
  • Spanish: vestigio — that which remains
  • Vietnamese: di tích — that which remains
  • Walloon: rilike — that which remains
  • Bashkir: ҡомартҡы (qomartqı) — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Bulgarian: сувенир (suvenir) — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Catalan: relíquia — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Czech: přežitek — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Finnish: muisto — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Finnish: muistoesine — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Galician: reliquia — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • German: Relikt — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Greek: ενθύμιο (enthýmio) — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Ancient Greek: ἐνθύμιον (enthúmion) — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Hungarian: emlék — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Italian: ricordo — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Italian: avanzo — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Macedonian: рели́квија (relíkvija) — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Macedonian: рели́кт (relíkt) — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Macedonian: сувени́р (suvenír) — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Māori: o(w)ha — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Polish: przeżytek — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Polish: relikt — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Portuguese: relíquia — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Romanian: relicvă — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Russian: рели́квия (relíkvija) — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Russian: рели́кт (relíkt) — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Tagalog: relikaryo — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Walloon: rilike — old thing, possibly kept for sentimental reasons
  • Arabic: ذَخِيرَة (ḏaḵīra) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Armenian: մասունք (masunkʻ) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Belarusian: мо́шчы (móščy) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Bulgarian: мо́щи (móšti) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Chinese Mandarin: 聖髑 /圣髑 (shèngdú) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Czech: relikvie — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Danish: relikvie — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Dutch: relikwie — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Esperanto: relikvo — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Finnish: pyhäinjäännös — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Finnish: reliikki — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • French: relique — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • German: Reliquie — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Greek: κειμήλιο (keimílio) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Greek: λείψανο (leípsano) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Ancient Greek: κειμήλιον (keimḗlion) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Ancient Greek: λείψανον (leípsanon) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Hungarian: ereklye — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Hungarian: relikvia — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Icelandic: helgur dómur — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Indonesian: relikui — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Irish: taise — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Old Irish: cathach — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Italian: cimelio — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Italian: reliquia — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Japanese: 聖遺物 (seiibutsu) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Korean: 성유물 (seong'yumul) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Macedonian: мо́шти (móšti) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Macedonian: рели́квија (relíkvija) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Middle English: relik — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Norwegian Bokmål: relikvie — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: relikvie — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Church Slavic: мощи (mošti) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Old Galician-Portuguese: relica — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Polish: relikwia — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Portuguese: relíquia — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Romanian: moaște — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Russian: мо́щи (móšči) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Serbo-Croatian: мо̏шти — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Serbo-Croatian: релѝквија — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Serbo-Croatian: mȍšti — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Serbo-Croatian: relìkvija — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Slovak: relikvia — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Slovene: relikvija — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Spanish: reliquia — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Tagalog: agnos — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Tagalog: relikaryo — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Ukrainian: мо́щі (móšči) — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Walloon: rilike — part of a body or an object of religious significance
  • Welsh: crair — part of a body or an object of religious significance
Real reading context

relic in complete knowledge articles