Solemnis

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. A ceremonial occasion or event marked by formality and solemnity
2. Describing something that is serious, dignified, and performed in a traditional manner
3. Pertaining to rituals that demand reverence and are characterized by a heavy, earnest tone

Etymology: Latin "sollemnis" meant "annual" or "performed at a fixed yearly time" before it came to mean solemn. It is built from "sollus," "whole" or "entire," and "annus," "year," so the original sense was something like "celebrated every year with full ceremony." The idea of a sacred rite repeated on a set date gave the word its dignity, and the sense of grave formality came later as the observances grew more serious. English borrowed the word from Latin through Old French "solemne," and it appears in Middle English with the meaning of a religious or public ceremony. Its adjective sense, "marked by formal dignity," followed. The Latin form "sollemnis" is also the root of the English "solemn," which is the usual form in English, and the Latin form survives in the modern term above.

Synonyms: solemn, formal, ceremonial, serious, dignified

Antonyms: informal, casual, frivolous, lighthearted