rosary

Meanings

1. Prayer beads, a string of beads used to keep track of repetitions in prayer, particularly of the Roman Catholic Marian prayer "Hail Mary" (Ave Maria).
2. A Roman Catholic devotion involving the repetition of a series of Marian prayers, usually 5, 15, or 20 decades of "Hail Marys", each decade beginning with "Our Father" and ending with "Glory Be to the Father", but sometimes including other Roman Catholic, Anglican, or Lutheran prayers.
3. A series or collection of thoughts, literary pieces, etc. intended for similar contemplation.
4. A 13th-century coin minted in Europe as a counterfeit debased form of the sterling silver penny of Edward I, at first accepted as a halfpenny and then outlawed.
5. A rose garden.

Etymology

From Middle English rosarie, from Latin rosārium, here in its sense as a garland of roses. The coin usage referred to the laurel wreath appearing on the obverse bust, as opposed to the bare head on the pollard. Doublet of Rosario and rosarium.