lares and penates
from Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 26, 2007 is: lares and penates • \LAIR-eez-end-puh-NAY-teez\ • noun 1 : household gods 2 : personal or household effects Examples: "Well, Mr. F., his wife, children, mother and stepdaddy, along with his lares and penates, moved out of here forever on a pick-up last Tuesday." (Flannery O'Connor, Letter, June 1, 1957) Did you know? The phrase "lares and penates" is at home in the elevated writings of scholars. A classicist could tell you that Lares and Penates were Roman gods once worshipped as guardians of the household, and an avid Walpolian might be able to tell you that his or her favorite author (Horace Walpole) is credited with first domesticating the phrase to refer to a person's possessions. In the centuries since Walpole used "lares and penates" in a 1775 letter to the English poet William Mason, the phrase has become solidly established in the English language, and it continues to be used by authors and journalists today. *Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.
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