Meaning

noun (Judaism) either of two small leather cases containing texts from the Hebrew Scriptures (known collectively as tefillin); traditionally worn (on the forehead and the left arm) by Jewish men during mor

originFrom Late Middle English philacterie, philaterie, filaterie (“amulet; tefilla; balderdash, idle words”), from Late Latin phylacterium (“amulet; reliquary; tefilla”), from Koine Greek φῠλᾰκτήρῐον (phŭlăktḗrĭon, “amulet; tefilla”) (used in the New Testament to translate Hebrew תפילין (“tefillin”)), from Ancient Greek φῠλᾰκτήρῐον (phŭlăktḗrĭon, “fortified outpost, watchman’s post; protection,…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0