Wiktionary:Word of the day/2023/August 15

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Word of the day
for August 15
hecatomb n
  1. (Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, historical) A great public sacrifice to the gods, originally of a hundred oxen; also, a great number of animals reserved for such a sacrifice.
  2. (by extension, religion, historical) A great public sacrifice in other religions; also, a great number of animals or people reserved for such a sacrifice.
  3. (figuratively, literary and poetic) A great number of animals, people, or things that are sacrificed or destroyed; any great sacrifice; also (generally), a large amount.

hecatomb v

  1. (transitive) To provide (someone or something) with a hecatomb.

Today is Ferragosto, a public holiday in Italy. The term derives from the Latin feriae Augusti (holidays of the Emperor Augustus), and is said to have been introduced by Augustus after his victory at the Battle of Actium in 31 B.C.E.

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