"vindication of divine justice," 1771, from French théodicée, title of a 1710 work by Leibniz to prove the justice of God in a world with much moral and physical evil, from Greek theos "god" (from PIE root *dhes-, forming words for religious concepts) + dike "custom, usage; justice, right; court case" (see Eurydice). Related: Theodicean.
theo-
Theobald
theocentric
theocracy
theocrat
theodicy
theodolite
Theodore
Theodoric
Theodosia
theogony
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