Link Centre Dictionary

Paternoster

pa·ter·nos·ter

UK/ˈpɑːtəˌnɒstə(ɹ)/ US/ˈpɑtəɹˌnɔstɚ/ uncommon archaic

noun

1.

(Roman Catholic Church) the Lord''s Prayer in Latin; translates as `our father''

2.

a type of lift having a chain of open compartments that move continually in a loop so that (agile) passengers can step on or off at each floor

Origin

From Middle English paternoster, pater noster, from Old English Paternoster, from Latin Pater noster (“our father”) (the first two words of the Oratio Dominica (“the Lord's prayer”)), from pater (“father”) + noster (“our”). The lift and the fishing equipment are named from their resemblance to a rosary.

Phrases

  • paternoster lake
  • paternoster pump
  • paternoster wheel
  • paternoster while

Related words

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.