: a usually ornamental wood or stone screen or partition wall behind an altar
Illustration of reredos
Examples of reredos in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the WebRestorer Sofia Lobo discovered the bee nests, called cells, while cleaning the 20-foot-tall altarpiece, or reredos.—Theresa MacHemer, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Feb. 2020
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'reredos.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Middle English, from Anglo-French reredors, areredos, from arere behind + dos back, from Latin dorsum — more at arrear
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