'Extreme unction' definitions:

Definition of 'extreme unction'

(from WordNet)
noun
A Catholic sacrament; a priest anoints a dying person with oil and prays for salvation [syn: anointing of the sick, extreme unction, last rites]

Definition of 'Extreme unction'

From: GCIDE
  • Unction \Unc"tion\, n. [OE. unccioun, uncioun, OF. oncion, onction, F. onction, fr. L. unctio, fr. ungere, unctum, to anoint. See Unguent.]
  • 1. The act of anointing, smearing, or rubbing with an unguent, oil, or ointment, especially for medical purposes, or as a symbol of consecration; as, mercurial unction. [1913 Webster]
  • To be heir, and to be king By sacred unction, thy deserved right. --Milton. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. That which is used for anointing; an unguent; an ointment; hence, anything soothing or lenitive. [1913 Webster]
  • The king himself the sacred unction made. --Dryden. [1913 Webster]
  • Lay not that flattering unction to your soul. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
  • 3. Divine or sanctifying grace. [R.] [1913 Webster]
  • 4. That quality in language, address, or the like, which excites emotion; especially, strong devotion; religious fervor and tenderness; sometimes, a simulated, factitious, or unnatural fervor. [1913 Webster]
  • The delightful equivoque and unction of the passage in Farquhar. --Hazlitt. [1913 Webster]
  • The mention of thy glory Is unction to the breast. --Neale (Rhythm of St. Bernard). [1913 Webster]
  • Extreme unction (R. C. Ch. & Gr. Ch.), the sacrament of anointing in the last hours; the application of consecrated oil by a priest to all the senses, that is, to eyes, ears, nostrils, etc., of a person when in danger of death from illness, -- done for remission of sins. [James v. 14, 15.] [1913 Webster]

Definition of 'Extreme unction'

From: GCIDE
  • Extreme \Ex*treme"\, a. [L. extremus, superl. of exter, extrus, on the outside, outward: cf. F. extr[^e]me. See Exterior.]
  • 1. At the utmost point, edge, or border; outermost; utmost; farthest; most remote; at the widest limit. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. Last; final; conclusive; -- said of time; as, the extreme hour of life. [1913 Webster]
  • 3. The best of worst; most urgent; greatest; highest; immoderate; excessive; most violent; as, an extreme case; extreme folly. "The extremest remedy." --Dryden. "Extreme rapidity." --Sir W. Scott. [1913 Webster]
  • Yet extreme gusts will blow out fire. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
  • 4. Radical; ultra; as, extreme opinions. [1913 Webster]
  • The Puritans or extreme Protestants. --Gladstone. [1913 Webster]
  • 5. (Mus.) Extended or contracted as much as possible; -- said of intervals; as, an extreme sharp second; an extreme flat forth. [1913 Webster]
  • Extreme and mean ratio (Geom.), the relation of a line and its segments when the line is so divided that the whole is to the greater segment is to the less.
  • Extreme distance. (Paint.) See Distance., n., 6.
  • Extreme unction. See under Unction. [1913 Webster]
  • Note: Although this adjective, being superlative in signification, is not properly subject to comparison, the superlative form not unfrequently occurs, especially in the older writers. "Tried in his extremest state." --Spenser. "Extremest hardships." --Sharp. "Extremest of evils." --Bacon. "Extremest verge of the swift brook." --Shak. "The sea's extremest borders." --Addison. [1913 Webster]

Synonyms of 'extreme unction'

From: Moby Thesaurus