Introibo

In·tro·i·bo
I1N1T1R1O1I1B3O1
UK/ˈɪntɹəʊiːbəʊ/

noun

The prayers spoken by the priest at the foot of the altar at the start of a Tridentine Mass.

Scrabble 10

Meanings

nounIntroibo (plural not attested)
  1. no pluralCatholicismThe prayers spoken by the priest at the foot of the altar at the start of a Tridentine Mass.

    At the Introibo he noticed at his right, as usual, his guardian angel, who acted as the angel mentioned by St. John in the Apocalypse, standing before the altar and bearing a golden censer.

    1959, Henri Béchard, The Visions of Bernard Francis de Hoyos, S.J.: Apostle of the Sacred Heart in Spain, a Biography, page 72
    2 more examples

    In place of the humble but hopeful supplication of the Introibo, we have the narcissistic, desperate anguish of 1, punctuated by a blues refrain in the key of death and loss, drunkenness, violence, and sexuality.

    1964, John William Corrington, The Anatomy of Love and Other Poems, page 9

    As imposing and plump as Buck Mulligan standing on top of a spiral stairway whilst intoning an “Introibo”, his slowly magnifying body brings to mind a purplish balloon, of a sort that you might buy for your child in Parc Montsouris.

    1994, Georges Perec, translated by Gilbert Adair, A Void, page 273

Origin

  1. Ecclesiastical Latinintroībō ad altāre Deī“I shall go in towards the altar of God”
  2. EnglishIntroibo

From Ecclesiastical Latin introībō ad altāre Deī (“I shall go in towards the altar of God”), the first line spoken.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

Introibo. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Introibo

MLA

“Introibo.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Introibo. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Introibo,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Introibo.

Source: Introibo on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.