Dominical, a. and n.
(dəʊˈmɪnɪkəl)
[ad. med.L. dominicāl-is, in F. dominical (1417 in Hatz.-Darm.), f. L. dominic-us of or belonging to a lord or master, f. dominus lord.]
A. adj. I. In ecclesiastical uses.
1. Of or pertaining to the Lord (Jesus Christ); Lord's. Dominical day: the Lord's day, Sunday. Dominical year: the year of our Lord.
| 1553 Eden Treat. Newe Ind. (Arb.) 30 He came thether on the Sundaye called the Dominical day. 1560 Becon New Catech. (1844) 239 It is the dominical supper, that is to say, the Lord's. 1582 N. T. (Rhem.) Rev. i. 10, I was in spirit on the Dominical day. c 1645 Howell Lett. (1688) IV. 472 The Dominical Prayer, and the Apostolical Creed. 1743 Fielding J. Wild ii. viii, After the exercise of the dominical day is over. 1884 Brewer Hen. VIII Pref. 7 Marked with the regnal and dominical year. |
2. Of or pertaining to the Lord's day or Sunday [L. dominica (dies)]: Sunday-.
| 1623 Cockeram, Dominicall, belonging to the Lords day. 1649 Milton Eikon. i. Wks. 1738 I. 367 That reverend Statute for Dominical Jigs and Maypoles..deriv'd from the example of his Father James. 1663 Cowley Cutter Coleman St. ii. iii, Grave Dominical Postures. 1891 Times 9 Apr. 5/5 Their demand..for a 36 hours' dominical rest, that is, rest from Saturday at 6 p.m. till Monday at 6 a.m. |
b. Dominical letter: the letter used to denote the Sundays in a particular year.
The seven letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G are used in succession to denote the first seven days of the year (Jan. 1–7), and then in rotation the next seven days, and so on, so that, e.g., if the 3rd January be a Sunday, the dominical letter for the year is C. Leap Year has two Dominical letters, one for the days preceding Feb. 29 (or according to some, Feb. 24; cf. bissextile), the other for the rest of the year.
| 1577–87 Holinshed Hist. Eng. v. ii. (R.) In the yeere of our Lord 446..the dominicall letter going by E, the prime by 10. 1594 Blundevil Exerc. vii. viii. (ed. 7) 660 When 28 is the number of the Sunnes Circle, A is alwaies the Dominical Letter. 1630 J. Taylor (Water P.) Dog of War Wks. ii. 229/2 Some like Dominical Letters goe In Scarlet from the top to toe. 1868 Chambers' Encycl. III. 629 If the dominical letter of a common year be G, F will be the dominical letter for the next year. |
c. fig. (from the printing of the Dominical letter in red, or larger type; cf. red-letter day.)
| 1632 Massinger Emperor East i. ii, At what times of the year He may do a good deed for itself, and that is Writ in dominical letters. 1644–7 Cleveland Char. Lond. Diurn. 6 For all Cromwells Nose weares the Dominicall Letter. 1651 Randolph, etc. Hey for Honesty iv. iii, Should have scratched your face till it had been a dominical one, and as full of red letters as any Pond's Almanac in Christendom. |
II. In legal and other uses.
† 3. Belonging to a demesne or domain [med.L. dominicum]; domanial. Obs.
| 1540–1 Elyot Image Gov. (1556) 159 He..craftily enterlaced his dominical landes with their servile possessions. 1640 Somner Antiq. Canterb. 310 Which..passe by and under the name of dominicall or desmeasne-tithes. |
† 4. Of or pertaining to an absolute lord despotic.
| 1644 H. Parker Jus Pop. 37 That Dominicall-power..is unnaturall: the very definition of it leaves the slave utterly disinherited of himself and subject to his masters sole ends. Ibid., If this condition did justify Dominicall-rule. |
5. Pertaining to a dominie or schoolmaster; pedagogic. nonce-use.
| 1882 G. Macdonald Castle W. III. iv. 58 The schoolmaster..knocking down the violator of the dominical sanctity. |
† 6. = Dominican a.1 rare.
| 1600 E. Blount tr. Conestaggio 126 Least he should seeme..to follow the advise of the dominicall Fryers. |
B. n. [In sense 1, ad. med.L. dominicāle, -ālis: see Du Cange.]
† 1. Eccl. A garment or veil for Sundays; spec. a veil worn by women when receiving the Communion. Obs.
| 1565 Jewel Repl. Harding 73 (R.) Wee decree that euery woman when she dooth communicate, haue her dominical. 1727–51 Chambers Cycl. s.v., The Council of Auxerre,..decrees, that women communicate with their dominical. |
† 2. Short for Dominical letter: see A. 2 b. Obs.
| 1588 Shakes. L.L.L. v. ii. 44 Let me not die your debtor, My red Dominicall, my golden letter. 1686 Plot Staffordsh. 421 Their Dominicals and week-day Letters. |
† 3. The Lord's house; a church. Obs. rare.
| 1659 Gauden Tears of Ch. 351 Then began Christian Churches, Oratories, or Dominicals, to out-shine the Temples of the Heathen Gods. |
† 4. The Lord's day, Sunday. Obs.
| 1628 Jackson Creed ix. xxiv. §3 May we Christians then call the Friday before Easter the day of our atonement, or the dominical next after it, the great Sabbath? 1673 B. Oley Pref. to Jackson's Wks. (1844) I. 27 Matter proper for every dominical and festival in the year. |
5. One who observes the Lord's Day, but does not treat it as representing the Sabbath of the Old Testament: opposed to Sabbatarian.
| 1861 Hessey in Guardian 13 Mar. 163/1 These Dominicals (thus argue the Sabbatarians)..substitute for a Divine foundation of Sunday, one of mere human invention, the authority of the Church. 1884 W. F. Crafts Sabb. for Man (1891) 629 Those Dominicals who hold the New Testament Lord's Day, but deny the Genesis Sabbath. |