Definition of sanbenito
sanbenitos
1 : a sackcloth coat worn by penitents on being reconciled to the church
2 : a Spanish Inquisition garment resembling a scapular and being either yellow with red crosses for the penitent or black with painted devils and flames for the impenitent condemned to an auto-da-fé
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Origin and Etymology of sanbenito
Spanish sambenito, from San Benito St. Benedict of Nursia
First Known Use: circa 1560
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