temple

1 of 2

noun (1)

tem·​ple ˈtem-pəl How to pronounce temple (audio)
1
: a building for religious practice: such as
a
often capitalized : either of two successive national sanctuaries in ancient Jerusalem
b
: a building for Mormon sacred ordinances
c
: the house of worship of Reform and some Conservative Jewish congregations
2
: a local lodge of any of various fraternal orders
also : the building housing it
3
: a place devoted to a special purpose
a temple of cuisine
templed adjective

temple

2 of 2

noun (2)

1
: the flattened space on each side of the forehead of some mammals including humans
2
: one of the side supports of a pair of glasses jointed to the bows and passing on each side of the head

Examples of temple in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Most recently, on Jan. 22, 2024, India Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a Hindu temple in Ayodhya on the site of a mosque that had been built in 1528 but violently destroyed in 1992 by Hindu radicals, after a century of controversies over the land. Ahmet T. Kuru, The Conversation, 1 Mar. 2024 Sturdy concrete government buildings like the National Assembly evoke the pyramidal design of a Maya temple, perched on an artificial mound where breezes could cool the structure. Simon Romero Alejandro Cegarra, New York Times, 28 Feb. 2024 That extends from making gyoza dumplings all the way up to the preservation of a one-thousand-year-old temple. Laura Manske, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024 Some people also feel like their temples are especially tender or are at the center of the pain. Daryl Austin, USA TODAY, 20 Feb. 2024 The Nation's first mosque, also called a temple, was in Detroit, and is still referred today as Mosque No. 1. Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press, 17 Feb. 2024 The majority of Nepal’s 29 million people are Hindu, and every neighborhood has a temple that houses such items. Binaj Gurubacharya, Fortune, 15 Feb. 2024 The restaurant started as an intimate temple of creative Italian foods made with Arizona ingredients. Bahar Anooshahr, The Arizona Republic, 15 Feb. 2024 Early Southerners, inspired by ancient civilizations like the Greeks, started building homes based on classic Greek temples to represent the prosperity of their young country. Zoe Gowen, Southern Living, 23 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'temple.' 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

Noun (1)

Middle English, in part going back to Old English tempel, templ, in part borrowed from Anglo-French temple, both borrowed from Latin templum "space of sky or land delimited orally by an augur, piece of ground used for taking auspices, sacred precinct, building consecrated to a deity," of uncertain origin

Note: Latin templum has been traditionally derived from the Indo-European verbal base tem- "cut" (see tome), on the assumption that the original templum was a space "cut out" by the augur; the suffix would presumably be -lo-, with the -p- secondary. Greek témenos "sacred precinct" has been compared. More recently templum as been associated with a putative *temp- "stretch, extend," assuming a further sense "measure" (see tempo); the templum would then be a space "measured" by an augur.

Noun (2)

Middle English, borrowed from Anglo-French, going back to Vulgar Latin *tempula, altered (with conformation to the suffix -ula) from Latin tempora, plural (taken as feminine singular) of tempus "side of the forehead, temple," of uncertain origin

Note: On the assumption that Latin tempor-, tempus "time" meant originally "stretch, extent" (see tempo) tempus "temple" has been taken as a semantic bifurcation of the same word, the temple of the head being the place where the skin is stretched tightly against the skull. Compare Old Norse þunn-vangi, Old High German dunnwangi "temple," literally, "thin-cheek."

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of temple was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near temple

Cite this Entry

“Temple.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/temple. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

temple

1 of 2 noun
tem·​ple ˈtem-pəl How to pronounce temple (audio)
: a building for worship

temple

2 of 2 noun
: the flattened space on each side of the forehead of some mammals including human beings

Medical Definition

temple

noun
tem·​ple ˈtem-pəl How to pronounce temple (audio)
1
: the flattened space on each side of the forehead of some mammals (as humans)
2
: one of the side supports of a pair of glasses jointed to the bows and passing on each side of the head

Geographical Definition

Temple

geographical name

Tem·​ple ˈtem-pəl How to pronounce Temple (audio)
city in northeast central Texas south-southwest of Waco population 66,102

Biographical Definition

Temple 1 of 4

biographical name (1)

Tem·​ple ˈtem-pəl How to pronounce Temple (audio)
Frederick 1821–1902 archbishop of Canterbury (1896–1902)

Temple

2 of 4

biographical name (2)

Shirley 1928–2014 Shirley Temple Black American actress and diplomat

Temple

3 of 4

biographical name (3)

Sir William 1628–1699 British statesman

Temple

4 of 4

biographical name (4)

William 1881–1944 son of Frederick Temple archbishop of Canterbury (1942–44)

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