Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Historians believe that Valentine's Day is rooted in the Roman love and fertility festival, Lupercalia, and was a move by Gelasius I to Christianise pagan traditions.

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2025

She explained that Lupercalia was celebrated in Rome between February 13–15 to stave off evil and celebrate fertility.

From Fox News • Feb. 14, 2020

Apparently, they’re celebrating Lupercalia, though their frolic looks a lot more like heavy metal night on the Westside piers.

From New York Times • Mar. 29, 2019

The holiday itself dates back many centuries before then; it is apparently another pagan holiday that Christians attempted to co-opt, by transforming the Roman fertility celebration Lupercalia into St. Valentine’s Day.

From Slate • Feb. 14, 2019

And as the Lupercalia began about the middle of February, the pastors appear to have chosen Saint Valentine's Day for the celebration of this new feast.

From Good Stories for Holidays by Olcott, Frances Jenkins