genuflection

Definition

The act of genuflecting.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin genuflexio, though with standardized spelling. By surface analysis, genuflect (“to bend the knee”) + -ion (Latinate abstract-noun suffix).

Example Sentences

• "Those impious Pigs, Who, by frequent squeaks, have dared impugn The settled Swellfoot system, or to make Irreverent mockery of the genuflexions Inculcated by the arch-priest, have been whipt Into a loyal and an orthodox whine."
• "Certain business titans have made Mar-A-Lago a scene of such flagrant self-abnegation, ring-kissing, and genuflection that it would embarrass a medieval Pope."