a sultan's palace, esp in the former Turkish empire
Word origin
C16: from Italian serraglio animal cage, from Medieval Latin serrāculum bolt, from Latin sera a door bar; associated also with Turkish seray palace
seraglio in American English
(sɪˈræljoʊ; sɪˈrɑljoʊ)
nounWord forms: pluralseˈraglios
1.
the part of a Muslim household where wives or concubines live; harem
2.
the palace of a Turkish sultan
Word origin
It serraglio, enclosure, padlock, also (infl. by Turk saray, palace: see serai), place, seraglio < ML serraculum, a bolt, bar < LL serare, to lock, bar < L sera, a bolt, lock
Examples of 'seraglio' in a sentence
seraglio
At the end of the day they were exhausted as they had never been; but they had an ease and satiety, like late leavers from a seraglio.
Harvey, John COUP D'ETAT (2002)
He points out the shimmering red and gold curtains lining the kitchen door, a manifestation of the seraglio theme currently in vogue.