ordeal
1
9.9
- noun
- /ɔrˈdil/
- Archaic
:
ordalía
- No dream, vision, or revelation had pictured to the Saints the terrible ordeal that awaited them.
- trial by ordeal
Examples
-
To me, the whole business sounded like trial by ordeal, the medieval ritual where the hands and legs of a suspected witch were bound before she was thrown into a pond to see if she could float.
Fiction book (1999) -
During the Middle Ages, an accused person could undergo a serious ordeal to prove their innocence or guilt.
-
The trial by ordeal was against her.
-
I sentence him to trial by ordeal.
-
Let us submit her to trial by ordeal.
-
In Numbers 5:11-29, a jealous husband may subject his wife to a trial by ordeal in order to determine her faithfulness.
Academic text (1991) -
The ordeal of walking over hot coals was believed to be a test of divine judgment.
-
In ancient cultures, people often faced an ordeal, such as holding a red-hot iron, to determine their fate.
Synonyms
A way to decide if someone is guilty by making them do dangerous tests and seeing if they survive
Compounds
- UK
A dark brown seed from a West African vine that is very poisonous and used in medicine and guilt trials
- South African
An evergreen tree from South Africa used in traditional tests to decide guilt or innocence
- Literature
A way to decide if someone is guilty by making them do dangerous tests and seeing if they survive
How Dangerous
361
6.5
- Offensive
582
5.7
- Archaic
1
9.9
- Formal
∞
3.7
469
1.0
Surface Forms
Etymology
Ordeal comes from an old English word ordāl that meant 'judgment' and referred to a 'trial' by fire or water where people believed God would protect the innocent.