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Psalter

Psalter

1 9.9
A book that contains the Psalms used for prayer or worship
  • noun
  • /ˈsɔltər/
  • Literature
translation icon : Salterio
  • In common medieval representations, Christ on the cross is flanked by Mary to his right and by John the Evangelist to his left; innumerable Psalter images testify to this.
  • Khludov Psalter

Examples

  • She found comfort in reading the Psalter every evening before bed.

  • Illustrated Psalter books furnish a record of this perception.

    Academic text (2006)
  • And some of those practices include things like prayer, you know, engaging in memorizing the Psalter, you know, all sorts of things along those lines.

  • Alternatively, the psalter may be prayed in course, that is, consecutively, over the course of a month.

    Blog text (1)
  • To thaw the queen, Fulk gave her a special present: the sumptuous psalter that bears her name.

    Academic text (2011)
  • But now she labored through the old tales, finger plodding from word to word, returning now and again to the Psalter as to a refrain.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • In the preface miniature of the Khludov Psalter, sight and sound are linked (Fig. 12).

    Academic text (2006)
  • Many churches use the Psalter during their services for communal prayer.

  • The choir sang selections from the Psalter during the special liturgical celebration.

Synonyms

Book of Psalms
vsPsalter
  • Literature
1 4.6

A book in the Bible with religious songs, prayers, and poems used in Jewish and Christian worship

is arranged as a book for liturgical or devotional use
Psalms
vsPsalter
  • Literature
1 7.9

A book in the Bible with 150 religious songs and poems often linked to King David

is shaped for worship and devotion rather than listed only as poems

Surface Forms

Psalter singular
Psalters plural

Morphology

Psalter = psalm (transparent) = psalm + ter

The meaning 'a book of Psalms' is directly related to 'psalm' and thus readily inferable by learners despite the historical formation.

Etymology

Psalter comes from a Greek word psaltērion that meant a 'stringed instrument' used to play songs. It has the same root as psalm, a 'song of praise', so a Psalter came to mean a book of those songs used in prayer.