D defs.my
Menu ☰
Entry 4 senses Webster, 1913

Unction

· Unc·tion · IPA /ˈʌŋk.ʃən/
01 n. The act of anointing, smearing, or rubbing with an unguent, oil, or ointment, especially for medical purposes, or as a symbol of consecrati…
  1. 1.
    The act of anointing, smearing, or rubbing with an unguent, oil, or ointment, especially for medical purposes, or as a symbol of consecration; as, mercurial unction.
    “To be heir, and to be king By sacred unction, thy deserved right.” — Milton.
  2. 2.
    That which is used for anointing; an unguent; an ointment; hence, anything soothing or lenitive.
    “The king himself the sacred unction made.” — Dryden.
    “Lay not that flattering unction to your soul.” — Shak.
  3. 3.
    Divine or sanctifying grace.[R.]
  4. 4.
    That quality in language, address, or the like, which excites emotion; especially, strong devotion; religious fervor and tenderness; sometimes, a simulated, factitious, or unnatural fervor.
    “The delightful equivoque and unction of the passage in Farquhar.” — Hazlitt.
    “The mention of thy glory Is unction to the breast.” — Neale (Rhythm of St. Bernard).
Phrases & compounds
Extreme unction — the sacrament of anointing in the last hours; the application of consecrated oil by a priest to all the senses, that is, to eyes, ears, nostrils, etc., of a person when in danger of death from illness, -- done for remission of sins.