Word of the Day
: February 18, 2016deasil
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adv
DEE-zil
What It Means
: clockwise
deasil in Context
The worshippers dance around the fire deasil, or sunwise.
"Three times we walked deasil around our central candle. By the third cycle I felt power flowing from Sky's fingers to mine, from my fingers to Alyce's." — Cate Tiernan, Spellbound, 2001
Did You Know?
According to an old custom, you can bring someone good fortune by walking around the person clockwise three times while carrying a torch or candle. In Scottish Gaelic, the word deiseil is used for the direction one walks in such a luck-bringing ritual. English speakers modified the spelling to deasil, and have used the word to describe clockwise motion in a variety of rituals.
Name That Antonym
Fill in the blanks to create an antonym of deasil: w _ d _ e _ s _ in _.
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Merriam-Webster unabridged