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bi·ret·ta also be·ret·ta

(bə-rĕtə)

n.
Ecclesiastical

A stiff square cap with three or four ridges across the crown. Birettas are worn especially by Roman Catholic clergy and are black for priests, purple for bishops, and red for cardinals.

[Italian berretta, from Old Provençal berret, cap, from Late Latin birrus, hooded cloak, probably of Celtic origin; perhaps akin to Irish berr and Welsh byrr, short.]

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biretta

German bishop

Gerhard Ludwig Müller

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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