genizah

noun

ge·​ni·​zah

gəˌnēˈzä,

-ˈnēzə

plural genizoth or genizot

-ˌnēˈzōt(h),

-ˈnēˌzōs

or genizahs

1

: a storeroom or repository in a synagogue used for discarded, damaged, or defective books and papers and sacred objects

valuable old manuscripts found in the genizah at Cairo

2

: the contents of a genizah

Word History

Etymology

Hebrew gĕnīzāh

First Known Use

1897, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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