See Also: synagogue(dictionary)
synagogue(encyclopedia)
synagogue(dictionary)

prefer (iou) and synagogue (sh)


prefer (iou)



prefer verb trans. Infl. -rr-. LME.
[Old & mod. French preferer from Latin praeferre, from prae PRE- + ferre to bear.]
I.
Advance in status, rank, etc; promote. Now chiefly, appoint to a more senior position. LME.
T. Fuller He was preferred Chief Baron of the Exchequer. W. H. Prescott Ferdinand promised..to prefer no foreigners to municipal offices.
b. refl. Further one's interests or career. LME-M17.
c. Advance to a position in life; esp. settle in Marriage. M16-E17.
Help forward or promote (a result). L16-E17.
II.
Favour (one person or thing) in preference to or to another (also foll. by over); like better. Also, choose rather (to do, that). LME.
D. Cecil Bath had ceased to be as fashionable as it had been..: the smart set of London had begun to prefer Regency Brighton. A. Kenny He preferred to deal with annulments in the mornings, and canonizations in the afternoon. Sunday Express She still prefers lace to silk.
b. Law. Give preference to as a creditor. Cf. PREFERENCE 5. LME.
Surpass, excel. rare. LME-L16.
III. Put in front or before. M-L16.
Submit formally (a statement, charge, claim, etc.) to an authority for consideration or approval. M16.
M. Puzo Do you want to prefer charges against whoever did this to you? Times Wimbledon magistrates dismissed an information preferred against him.
Present for acceptance, proffer; introduce, recommend. Now rare or obsolete. M16.
Pope Each am'rous nymph prefers her gifts in vain.
Refer, ascribe. L16-M17.

synagogue (sh)




In Judaism, a community house of worship that also serves as a place for assembly and study.

Though their exact origins are uncertain, synagogues flourished side by side with the ancient Temple cult; they existed long before Jewish sacrifice and the established priesthood were terminated with Titus's destruction of the Second Temple (AD 70). Thereafter, synagogues took on even greater importance as the unchallenged focal point of Jewish life. There is no standard synagogue architecture. A typical synagogue contains an ark (where the scrolls of the Law are kept), an "eternal light" burning before the ark, two candelabra, pews, a bimah (see bema), and sometimes a ritual bath (mikvah).