apsis

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

noun a domed or vaulted recess or projection on a building especially the east end of a church; usually contains the altar

From Latin apsis, hapsis, from Ancient Greek ἁψίς (hapsís, “arch, vault”). See also apse.

This is in letters of gold around the apsis of a mosaic group at the side of the 'scala santa', church of St. John Lateran, the Mother and Mistress of all the Catholic churches of the world. — The Innocents Abroad, Mark Twain
Below the great window in the apsis,--the same that contains what is one of the earliest of modern commentaries on the Book of Revelation,--the pavement was perforated by a number of small openings; and on looking down, I could see a subterranean chamber, with burning lamps. — Pilgrimage from the Alps to the Tiber : $b or, The influence of Romanism on trade, justice, and knowledge, J. A. (James Aitken) Wylie
To-day I became strongly impressed with the idea, that the balloon was now actually running up the line of apsides to the point of perigee—in other words, holding the direct course which would bring it immediately to the moon in that part of its orbit the nearest to the earth. — The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, The Raven Edition: Table Of Contents And Index Of The Five Volumes, Edgar Allan Poe

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