Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun An extract or selection from a book, especially a reading from a Scripture that forms part of a church service.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun An extract; a selection from a book; specifically, in the ancient Christian church, a passage of Scripture appointed to be read on certain Sundays and festive occasions.
  • noun 2. In ancient prosody, a group of two or more systems.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A selection or extract from a book; especially (Theol.), a selection from the Bible, appointed to be read in the churches or used as a text for a sermon.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun rhetoric A section of text forming a coherent thought, suitable for use in a speech.
  • noun A passage of Scripture to be read in public worship or a book containing such passages.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Late Latin pericopē, from Greek perikopē, a cutting around, section, from perikoptein, to cut around : peri-, peri- + koptein, to cut.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From late Latin pericope, from Greek περικοπή ‘section’, from peri- + κοπή ‘cutting’, from κόπτειν ‘to cut’.

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Examples

Comments

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  • Theologians tell us there’s hope

    Of limiting vile error’s scope.

    The good can endure

    With hearts that are pure

    And doses of strong pericope.


    This limerick left in place like a miscreant rotting on the gallows. Beware, ye hasty! (See above.)

    March 20, 2018

  • Pronunciation for those who embark on the epic voyage of scrolling to the bottom of the page is like PERRY-ka-pee.

    March 20, 2018

  • Now isn’t that bilby a nuisance. I do thank him, though I would represent the pronunciation as purr-RICK-a-pee.

    The audio pronunciations never seem to work on my iPad, where most composition gets done. I will be more wary in future.

    There once was a preacher in Chicopee

    Beset by severe insipidity.

    On Sundays he normally

    Abandoned his homily

    And served up a meal of pericope.

    March 21, 2018

  • Move over Nantucket, Chicopee has a limerick too.

    March 21, 2018