vestal
Americanadjective
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of or relating to the goddess Vesta.
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of, relating to, or characteristic of a vestal virgin; chaste; pure.
noun
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a chaste unmarried woman; virgin.
-
a nun.
adjective
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chaste or pure; virginal
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of or relating to the Roman goddess Vesta
noun
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a chaste woman; virgin
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a rare word for nun 1
Etymology
Origin of vestal
1400–50; late Middle English (adj.) < Latin vestālis. See Vesta, -al 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The vestal virgins were a way for a few women to hold a priesthood, though the occasional punishments inflicted on them shows their precarious status.
From Textbooks • Apr. 19, 2023
That transformation unlocked something new that shot her to the top of pop’s Olympus: the vestal vamp.
From New York Times • Aug. 9, 2022
A center wall, painted with floral-themed graffiti that recalls Keith Haring’s more vestal imagery, frames the open kitchen and rights the visual balance.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 31, 2019
Around the room, the machines’ shabby curtains snap open and bang shut; the vestal poll-watchers bend low over their thick volumes; and once again I have forgotten the number of my assembly district.
From The New Yorker • Nov. 5, 2018
“Flies,” he remembered, “On the white wonder of dear Juliet’s hand, may seize And steal immortal blessing from her lips, Who, even in pure and vestal modesty, Still blush, as thinking their own kisses sin.”
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
