Shrove Tuesday

Definition

The day before the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday.

Etymology

The second element is Tuesday; the first element may be a reflex of Old English *scrāf “confession” (related to the modern verb shrive), from the medieval practice of priests hearing confessions on this day.

Example Sentences

• "Observe when the Moon is new in February, the next Tuesday after is Shrove-tuesday: but if it change on Tuesday, then the next Tuesday following is Shrove-tuesday"
• "The day appointed for this extraordinary hunting-party was Shrove Tuesday. The Protestants of Paisley, in whose neighbourhood this story may be said to have originated, cannot discern the difference betwixt Shrove Tuesday and any other Tuesday; but if a Roman Catholic Princess, even in our free times, should be invited to a hunting-match on Shrove Tuesday, she would be shocked at the profane invitation."