Printer Friendly
Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary
3,907,674,716 visitors served.
forum Join the Word of the Day Mailing List For webmasters
?
Dictionary/
thesaurus
Medical
dictionary
Legal
dictionary
Financial
dictionary
Acronyms
 
Idioms
Encyclopedia
Wikipedia
encyclopedia
?

seraglio
(redirected from Ottoman harem)

   Also found in: Encyclopedia, Wikipedia 0.01 sec.
se·ra·glio  (s-rly, -räl-)
n. pl. se·ra·glios
1. A large harem.
2. A sultan's palace. Also called serai.

[Italian serraglio, enclosure, seraglio, probably partly from Vulgar Latin *serraculum, enclosure (from *serrre, to lace up, from Latin serre, from sera, door-bar) and partly from Turkish saray, palace (from Persian sary, inn; see ter-2 in Indo-European roots).]

seraglio [sɛˈrɑːlɪˌəʊ], serail [səˈraɪ -ˈraɪl -ˈreɪl]
n pl -raglios, -rails
1. (Non-Christian Religions / Islam) the harem of a Muslim house or palace
2. (Non-Christian Religions / Islam) a sultan's palace, esp in the former Turkish empire
3. (Non-Christian Religions / Islam) the wives and concubines of a Muslim
[from Italian serraglio animal cage, from Medieval Latin serrāculum bolt, from Latin sera a door bar; associated also with Turkish seray palace]

Seraglio the inmates of a harem, 1634; a house of women kept for debauchery—Johnson, 1755.
Examples: seraglio of the godly (i.e., a nunnery), 1672; of flattering lusts, 1711; of maids of honour, 1860; a cock and a seraglio of seven hens, 1773.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.seraglio - living quarters reserved for wives and concubines and female relatives in a Muslim householdseraglio - living quarters reserved for wives and concubines and female relatives in a Muslim household
living quarters, quarters - housing available for people to live in; "he found quarters for his family"; "I visited his bachelor quarters"
Translations
seraglio [seˈrɑːlɪəʊ] Nserallo m
seraglio
nSerail nt


Want to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit the webmaster's page for free fun content.
?Page tools
Printer friendly
Cite / link
Feedback
Add definition
Mentioned in?  References in periodicals archive?   Dictionary browser?   Full browser?
 
The Seraglio, a comic tale of love set in an Ottoman harem, opens the run on May 15 and will be repeated on May 18.
Women, Travel and the Ottoman Harem By Reina Lewis published by IB TAURIS ISBN 1 86064 730 8 price 14.
This is the story of the century-longSultanate of Women,and the unexpected inner workings of the Ottoman harem.
 
 
 
Dictionary, Thesaurus, and Translations
?

Terms of Use | Privacy policy | Feedback | Advertise with Us | Copyright © 2012 Farlex, Inc.
Disclaimer
All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional.