Emily Dickinson Lexicon

sacrament, n. [Fr. < L. 'oath, consecrate, set apart religiously, secure by a religious sanction, holy, dedicated'.]

1. Sacred symbol; outward sign; visible token; indication of inward spiritual grace.
2. Sabbath; Sunday meeting for receiving the Communion; the time for partaking of the Eucharist; [fig.] time of reverence; hour of quiet meditation; period of silent prayer.
3. Holy ordinance; sacred ritual.
4. Holiness; sanctity; sacredness; [fig.] spirituality; eternal essence; infinite goodness; everlasting love; profound physical and spiritual presence.
5. Troth; vow; promise; covenant; [fig.] marriage pledge.
6. Eucharist; Communion; [fig.] jubilee; blessing.
7. Prayer; [fig.] betrothal; engagement; relationship.
8. The Lord's supper; the supper of the Lamb; meal of broken bread and wine symbolizing the body and blood of Jesus; [fig.] charity; service to others; a life of good deeds; the feast of love (see Gk caritas); [Webster 1844] “The eucharist or communion of the Lord's supper, is also a sacrament, for by commemorating the death and dying love of Christ, Christians avow their special relation to him.”