Definition of SERAGLIO

seraglio

Plural: seraglios

Noun

  • The women's apartments in an Ottoman palace; a harem.
  • living quarters reserved for wives and concubines and female relatives in a Muslim household
  • A palace of a sultan.
  • A palace of a sultan.
  • The palace of the Grand Seignior in Constantinople.
  • A profligate or decadent residence of a rich person.
  • The sequestered living quarters used by wives and concubines (odalisques) in a Turkish Muslim household.
  • A brothel or place of debauchery.
  • An interior cage or enclosed courtyard for keeping wild beasts.

Examples

  • He formed a SERAGLIO of high-scoring tiles around the triple-word score, ready for a big play.

Origin / Etymology

From Italian serraglio, from Vulgar Latin *serrāculum, from a late form of Latin serāre (“lock up, close”), from sera (“lock, bolt”). The Italian word was used (because of phonetic similarity) to translate Turkish saray (palace). Compare serai, serail.

Synonyms

hareem, harem, serail

Scrabble Score: 9

seraglio: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
seraglio: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
seraglio: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 11

seraglio: valid Words With Friends Word