Meanings
- pluralplural onlyThe innermost parts of a building, such as a shrine, recess or a sanctuary within a temple.
He wished to be what he called "safe" with all those whom he had admitted to the penetralia of his house and heart.
1857, Anthony Trollope, “Mrs. Bold is Entertained by Dr. and Mrs. Grantly at Plumstead”, in Barchester Towers. […], copyright edition, volume II, Leipzig: Bernhard Tauchnitz, published 1859, →OCLC, page 122 more examples
I believe, had I been in the inmost recesses of my habitation—the very penetralia—your eagerness would have surmounted bolts, bars, decency, and everything.
1748, [Tobias Smollett], The Adventures of Roderick Random. […], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: […] [William Strahan] for J[ohn] Osborn […], →OCLC[…] Bob's countenance was sublimed by his recent interview, like that of a priest just come from the penetralia of the temple.
1880, Thomas Hardy, “A Discovery Turns the Scale”, in The Trumpet-Major […], volume III, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., […], →OCLC, page 94
Origin
- Latinpenetrālia
- Englishpenetralia
Borrowed from Latin penetrālia.
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with penetralia
Cite this entry
penetralia. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/penetralia
“penetralia.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/penetralia. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “penetralia,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/penetralia.
Source: penetralia on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.