SACRAMENT

noun Etymology: Middle English sacrement, ~, from Anglo-French & Late Latin; Anglo-French, from Late Latin ~um, from Latin, oath of allegiance, obligation, from sacrare to consecrate Date: 13th century 1. a Christian rite (as baptism or the Eucharist) that is believed to have been ordained by Christ and that is held to be a means of divine grace or to be a sign or symbol of a spiritual reality, a religious rite or observance comparable to a Christian ~, 2. capitalized communion 2a, Blessed Sacrament , something likened to a religious ~