holy of holies

holy of holies

A sacred or special place. Although used more generally today, the phrase originally described the sanctuary of the tabernacle in the Temple of Jerusalem where the Ark of the Covenant was kept. When it comes to college basketball, this is sacred ground—the holy of holies.
See also: holy, of
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

holy of holies

A place of awe or sacredness, as in The corporate board room is the holy of holies here. This expression is a translation of the Hebrew term for the sanctuary inside the tabernacle of the Temple of Jerusalem, where the sacred Ark of the Covenant was kept (Exodus 26:34). Its figurative use dates from the second half of the 1800s.
See also: holy, of
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

the holy of holies

If you describe something, especially a place, as the holy of holies, you mean that people think it is the most special or important thing of its kind. Last year, his work was performed at the Aldeburgh Festival, the holy of holies in the contemporary British music scene. Note: In a Jewish synagogue, the holy of holies is the inner room which only the chief rabbi may enter.
See also: holy, of
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.

holy of holies

a place or thing regarded as sacrosanct.
The reference here is to the Hebrew phrase for the inner chamber of the sanctuary in the Jewish Temple at Jerusalem, separated by a veil from the outer chamber.
See also: holy, of
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

ˌholy of ˈholies

(humorous) a special place which only particular people can enter: This room is the holy of holies. It contains the most valuable books in the world. The boss invited me into his holy of holies this morning. What a fantastic office he’s got!
In a Jewish temple, the holy of holies is the inner part, which only the chief priest can enter.
See also: holy, of
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
See also:
  • the holy of holies
  • sanctum sanctorum
  • how about
  • how/what about...?
  • eggs is eggs
  • How long is a piece of string?
  • from my cold, dead hands
  • (one's) best foot forward
  • best foot forward
  • sure as eggs is eggs
References in periodicals archive
In the face of the challenges of daily life, this "temple" and its "Holy of Holies" are also desecrated.
Jesus' 'rage'
Bakhtin's metaphor is significant because it implies that every individual has his or her own holy of holies which, presumably, contains his or her own individual "word." The polyphonic novel is thus one in which the divine-authorial word is no longer hidden behind a curtain but is instead one of many words circulating in a "great dialogue."
Whose holy of holies? Bakhtin's polyphony and Tolstoy the author-God
Kathy describes the Holy of Holies she and her partner created in their home.
An intimate space: create an "inner sanctum" where you can connect with your partner
This paper proposes that by then the Ark was no longer in the Holy of Holies and had previously been removed or destroyed.
The disappearance of the Ark of the Covenant
Within the temple there were 10 degrees of holiness, with the Holy of Holies being holiest of all.
Holy spaces
It had a sacramental and totemic significance for the Jews and was eventually housed in the Holy of Holies of Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem.
Tracking the Ark of the Covenant: By Camel, Foot and Ancient Ford in Search of Antiquity's Greatest Treasure
And speaking of environmental regulation, how did the ANWR region become the holy of holies? If energy independence is truly a priority, why has Congress said nothing about the massive 200 billion barrel oil field stretching into North Dakota?
Thank the politicians for high energy prices
Somehow he got it upgraded with the coveted 'yellow spot' that permits access to the holy of holies that is the parade ring' then spent his afternoon rubbing shoulders with such titans of the turf as Magnier, Tabor, Smith, Fabre and Take.
Blagging blogger must be unmasked; Observations
Instead, the Holy of Holies drops unannounced into Joan's day dressed up as a cute boy, a cafeteria worker in a hairnet, a toddler on the playground.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the cafeteria worker: God is the guest star in the first season of CBS' hit drama Joan of Arcadia--and it takes a troupe of actors to fill the role
For Origen and other ancient thinkers, these texts corresponded to ethics, which purifies, physics, which sends us beyond the sensory, and theology, "which leads us to union with God." Song of Songs, in other words, was literally the "holy of holies" in the reader's guide to spiritual progress.
The readable city and the rhetoric of excess: a reading of the Song of Songs
IN the secular world that we inhabit, the Assembly's Business Committee is perhaps the closest we come to a holy of holies.
The Assembly in procession; The Spin Doctor Lurking in the corridors of power
You will be invited into the holy of holies, the handover room, another plush designer space not unlike a private chapel.
BUSINESS LIFE: Designs on new art of selling cars
During her prosperous 22-year reign, she built Djeser-Djeseru ("Holy of Holies"), a mortuary temple that was architecturally ahead of its time.
HATSHEPSUT: His Majesty Herself
The Lothian and Borders Classic and Vintage Motorcycle Club are holding an autojumble in the town's Drill Hall from 10.30 and it's pounds 2 an adult for entry into the holy of holies.
WHEELS WITHIN WHEELS
This past summer, his Siegmund at the Bayreuth Festival, the Wagnerian holy of holies, deservedly won extravagant praise.
PLACIDO DOMINGO