arcana en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ɑɹˈkɑːnə/
- /ɑɹˈkeɪnə/
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From Latin arcānus (“hidden, secret”), from arcēre (“to withhold”), arca (“a chest”).
Meanings
-
(form-of, plural) plural of arcanum
form of arcanum
-
(uncountable) Specialized knowledge that is mysterious to the uninitiated.
The witch, repository of hieratic lore and folk legends and occult arcana, became the distributor of philtres and unguents, electuaries and pastilles, herbs and charms and incantations - directed toward sexual pleasures and amatory satisfactions.
1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of Aphrodisiacs, New York: The Citadel Press, page 223:Thou deign'st no answer,—or I fain would ask If since thy bright creation, thou hast seen Ought like a Newton, whose admitted eye The arcana of the universe explored Light's subtle ray its mechanism disclosed, The impetuous comet his mysterious lore Unfolded,
1827, Lydia Sigourney, Poems, To the Moon, page 15:This is not, however, a mere salmagundi of alphabetical arcana.
2013 September 14, Jane Shilling, “The Golden Thread: the Story of Writing, by Ewan Clayton, review [print edition: Illuminating language]”, in The Daily Telegraph (Review), page R29:
Deriveds
minor arcana · major arcana · lesser arcana
Relateds
arc · tarot · arcane · arcanum
Translations (3)
pl arkana (knowledge that is mysterious to the uninitiated) · fi arkana (knowledge that is mysterious to the uninitiated) · pl arkany (knowledge that is mysterious to the uninitiated)