oratory

Definition

A private chapel or prayer room.

Etymology

From Middle English oratorie, from Anglo-Norman oratorie, Middle French oratoire, and their source, Late Latin ōrātōrium. Doublet of oratorio.

Example Sentences

• "I will retire to my oratory, and pray to the blessed Virgin to inspire you with her holy counsels […]."
• "By public oratories are meant those attached to monasteries, convents, seminaries, etc., having a public entrance by which the faithful have access to them."
• "They had been given the old Oscott College premises as a temporary home, but were content there until Oratories could be established in the cities. St Philip Neri had specifically intended that the Oratory should be a city-based form of communal and missionary life."