Etymology From Middle English oratorie, from Anglo-Norman oratorie, Middle French oratoire, and their source, Late Latin ōrātōrium. Doublet of oratorio. Displaced native Old English bēdhūs.
1
A private chapel or prayer room.
I will retire to my oratory, and pray to the blessed Virgin to inspire you with her holy counsels […].1764, Horace Walpole, “chapter II”, in The Castle of Otranto:
2
A Roman Catholic chapel; a building for public or private worship that is not a parish church.
By public oratories are meant those attached to monasteries, convents, seminaries, etc., having a public entrance by which the faithful have access to them.1876, Michael Comerford, The Book of Holy Indulgences […] , page 29:
3
Specifically A Catholic church belonging to the Oratory of Saint Philip Neri.
They had been given the old Oscott College premises as a temporary home, but were content there until Oratories could be established in the cities. St Philip Neri had specifically intended that the Oratory should be a city-based form of communal and missionary life.2006, Judith F. Champ, William Bernard Ullathorne, 1806–1889: A Different Kind of Monk, →ISBN, page 168:
Etymology Borrowed from Latin ōrātōria, from the feminine of ōrātōrius (“oratorial”).
1
The art of public speaking, especially in a formal, expressive, or forceful manner.
2
Eloquence; the quality of artistry and persuasiveness in speech or writing.
Rising from humble farmhand to community organizer to a leader of the national Fatah party, Mr. Barghouti became known for his soaring oratory and common touch.2024 April 1, Taylor Luck, Fatima AbdulKarim, “Palestinian Mandela? Marwan Barghouti, imprisoned preacher of unity.”, in The Christian Science Monitor: