An object or person that is cursed or excommunicated; something held to be evil or abhorrent.
From Greek anathema via Latin, meaning 'something set up/dedicated' (originally as a religious offering), later shifted to mean 'curse' or 'thing cursed.'
The word 'anathema' started as a neutral religious term for temple offerings but flipped completely to mean the worst possible curse—it's a wild example of how words can reverse their entire meaning over centuries.
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