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or·a·to·ry²

(ôrə-tôr′ē, ŏr-)

n. pl. or·a·to·ries

1. A place for prayer, such as a small private chapel.

2. also Oratory

a. A Roman Catholic religious society founded in 1575 by Saint Philip Neri and consisting of secular priests.

b. A branch or church of this society.

[Middle English oratorie, from Old French, from Late Latin ōrātōrium, place of prayer, from Latin, neuter of ōrātōrius, for praying, from ōrāre, to pray.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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