holy

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Related to holy: Holy Bible, Holy Spirit, Holy Trinity, Holy god, Holy Quran

holy

sacred; hallowed: holy ground

Not to be confused with:

holey – full of holes: holey cheese

wholly – completely; entirely: The group was wholly in favor of the proposition.

ho·ly

(hō′lē)

adj. ho·li·er, ho·li·est

1. Belonging to, derived from, or associated with a divine power; sacred.

2. Regarded with veneration or specified for a religious purpose: a holy book; a holy place.

3. Living or undertaken with highly moral or spiritual purpose; saintly: a holy person; a holy way of life.

4. Regarded as deserving special respect or reverence: The pursuit of peace is our holiest quest.

5. Informal Used as an intensive: raised holy hell over the mischief their children did.

[Middle English holi, from Old English hālig; see kailo- in Indo-European roots.]

ho′li·ly adv.

ho′li·ness n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

holy

(ˈhəʊlɪ)

adj, holier or holiest

1. (Ecclesiastical Terms) of, relating to, or associated with God or a deity; sacred

2. (Ecclesiastical Terms) endowed or invested with extreme purity or sublimity

3. (Ecclesiastical Terms) devout, godly, or virtuous

4. holier-than-thou offensively sanctimonious or self-righteous: a holier-than-thou attitude.

5. holy terror

a. a difficult or frightening person

b. Irish informal a person who is an active gambler, womanizer, etc

n, pl -lies

(Ecclesiastical Terms)

a. a sacred place

b. the holy (functioning as plural) persons or things invested with holiness

[Old English hālig, hǣlig; related to Old Saxon hēlag, Gothic hailags, German heilig; see hallow]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ho•ly

(ˈhoʊ li)

adj. -li•er, -li•est.

1. recognized as or declared sacred by religious use or authority; consecrated: holy ground.

2. dedicated or devoted to the service of God, the church, or religion.

3. saintly; pious; devout.

4. having a spiritually pure quality: a holy love.

5. venerated as or as if sacred: a holy relic.

6. inspiring fear, awe, or distress: He's a holy terror when he's angry.

[before 900; Middle English holi, Old English hālig, variant of hāleg=hāl whole + -eg -y¹; c. Old Saxon hēlag, Old High German heilag, Old Norse heilagr]

ho′li•ly, adv.

syn: holy, sacred, hallowed refer to something that is the object of worship or veneration. holy refers to the divine, that which has its sanctity directly from God or is connected with Him: Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Something that is sacred is usu. dedicated to a religious purpose by human authority: a sacred shrine. Something that is hallowed has been made holy by being worshiped or venerated: The church graveyard is hallowed ground.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	holy - a sacred place of pilgrimage holy place, sanctum place, spot, topographic point - a point located with respect to surface features of some region; "this is a nice place for a picnic"; "a bright spot on a planet"
Adj.	1.	holy - belonging to or derived from or associated with a divine power consecrate, consecrated, dedicated - solemnly dedicated to or set apart for a high purpose; "a life consecrated to science"; "the consecrated chapel"; "a chapel dedicated to the dead of World War II" sacred - concerned with religion or religious purposes; "sacred texts"; "sacred rites"; "sacred music" unhallowed, unholy - not hallowed or consecrated

holy

adjective

1. sacred, blessed, hallowed, dedicated, venerable, consecrated, venerated, sacrosanct, sanctified To them, as to all Tibetans, this is a holy place.
sacred unholy, desecrated, unconsecrated, unhallowed, unsanctified

2. devout, godly, religious, pure, divine, faithful, righteous, pious, virtuous, hallowed, saintly, god-fearing The Indians think of him as a holy man.
devout worldly, earthly, evil, corrupt, secular, immoral, wicked, sinful, unholy, blasphemous, sacrilegious, irreligious, impious

Quotations
"Is that which is holy loved by the gods because it is holy, or is it holy because it is loved by the gods?" [Plato Euthyphro]

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

holy

adjective

1. Of, from, like, or being a god or God:

deific, divine, godlike, godly, heavenly.

2. In the service or worship of God or a god:

divine, religious, sacred.

3. Regarded with particular reverence or respect:

blessed, hallowed, sacred, sacrosanct.

4. Deeply concerned with God and the beliefs and practice of religion:

devotional, devout, godly, pietistic, pietistical, pious, prayerful, religious, saintly.

Translations

طاهِر ، تَقيمُقَدَّس مُقَدَّسٌ

svatýposvátný

hellig

heilig

άγιος ιερός

santo sagrado santa bendito

pyhä

sacré saint

svet

szent életû

heilagurheilagur; hreinn í hjarta

santo sacro santit...Sua Santit...

神聖な

신성한

sacer

Didysis ketvirtadienisŠventasis Tėvasšventenybėšventumas

svētītssvēts

svet

helig

เป็นที่เคารพบูชา

kutsal mukaddes temiz

linh thiêng

神圣的献身于宗教的

holy

[ˈhəʊlɪ] (holier (compar) (holiest (superl)))

A. ADJ [place, book] → sagrado, santo; [church, shrine] → sagrado; [person] → santo; [day] → de precepto
the holiest day in the Jewish calendar → el principal día de precepto or la principal fiesta de guardar del calendario judío
holy cow or mackerel or smoke! → ¡(por) Dios bendito!
holy shit! → ¡mierda!
to be a holy terror [child] → ser (más malo que) un demonio

B. CPD the Holy Bible N → la Santa Biblia
the Holy City N → la Ciudad Santa
Holy Communion N → Sagrada Comunión f
the Holy Father N → el Santo Padre
the Holy Ghost N → el Espíritu Santo
the Holy Grail N → el Santo Grial
the Holy Land N → la Tierra Santa
holy man N → santón m
holy matrimony N → santo matrimonio m
holy oil N → santos óleos mpl
holy orders NPL → órdenes fpl sagradas
to be in holy orders → ser sacerdote
to take holy orders → ordenarse sacerdote
the Holy Roman Empire N → el Sacro Imperio Romano Germánico
Holy Saturday N → Sábado m Santo
the Holy See N → la Santa Sede
the Holy Sepulchre N → el Santo Sepulcro
the Holy Spirit N → el Espíritu Santo
the Holy Trinity N → la Santísima Trinidad
holy war N → guerra f santa
holy water N → agua f bendita
Holy Week N → Semana f Santa
Holy Writ (o.f.) N → Sagradas Escrituras fpl
see also Scripture

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

holy

[ˈhəʊli] adj [place, site, day] → saint(e); [bread, water] → bénit(e); [ground] → sacré(e)
This is a holy place → C'est un lieu saint.
a holy man → un saint homme
a holy war → une guerre sainteHoly Bible n
the Holy Bible → la sainte BibleHoly Communion n → sainte communion f
to take Holy Communion → recevoir la sainte communionHoly Father n → Saint-Père mHoly Ghost Holy Spirit n → Saint-Esprit mHoly Grail n

(RELIGION) the Holy Grail → le Saint-Graal

(fig) → Graal m

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

holy

adj

(Rel) → heilig; oil, bread, ground → geweiht

holy cow or mackerel! (inf) → (ach du) heiliger Strohsack or Bimbam! (inf); holy smoke! (inf) → großer Gott! (inf); holy shit! (sl) → du liebe Scheiße! (inf); holy terror → Nervensäge f (inf), → Landplage f (hum)

n the Holy of Holies (lit) → das Allerheiligste; (fig) → ein Heiligtum nt

holy

Holy Ark

n (Eccl) → Thoraschrein m

Holy Bible

n the holy → die Bibel, die Heilige Schrift

Holy City

n the holy → die Heilige Stadt

Holy Communion

n → die heilige Kommunion, das heilige Abendmahl

Holy Father

n the holy (= the Pope) → der Heilige Vater

Holy Ghost

n = Holy Spirit

Holy Grail

n the holy → der Heilige Gral

Holy Land

n the holy → das Heilige Land

holy orders

pl → Priesterweihe f; to be in holy → dem geistlichen Stand angehören; to take holy → die Priesterweihe empfangen

Holy Roman Empire

n the holy (Hist) → das Heilige Römische Reich

Holy Rood

n → (heiliges) Kruzifix nt

Holy Saturday

n → Karsamstag m

Holy Scripture

n → die Heilige Schrift

Holy See

n the holy → der Heilige Stuhl

Holy Sepulchre

n the holy → das Heilige Grab

Holy Spirit

n the holy → der Heilige Geist

Holy Thursday

(in Roman Catholic Church) → Gründonnerstag m

(in Anglican Church) → Himmelfahrtstag m

Holy Trinity

n the holy → die Heilige Dreifaltigkeit or Dreieinigkeit

holy war

n → Heiliger Krieg

holy water

n → heiliges Wasser; (in Catholic Church) → Weihwasser nt

Holy Week

n → Karwoche f

Holy Writ

n (dated) the holy → die Heilige Schrift

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

holy

[ˈhəʊlɪ]

1. adj (-ier (comp) (-iest (superl))) (gen) → santo/a; (ground, bread) → consacrato/a, benedetto/a; (person) → pio/a; (vow) → religioso/a
the Holy Trinity → la Santissima Trinità
a holy terror (fam) → un demonio

holy

(ˈhəuli) adjective

1. (worthy of worship or respect because) associated with God, Jesus, a saint etc; sacred. the Holy Bible; holy ground.

2. good; pure; following the rules of religion. a holy life.

ˈholiness noun

1. the state of being holy.

2. (with capital. with His, ~Your etc) a title of the Pope.

the Holy Father

the Pope.

Holy ˈThursday noun

1. Ascension Day.

2. Maundy Thursday.

holy

→ مُقَدَّسٌ svatý hellig heilig άγιος santo pyhä sacré svet santo 神聖な 신성한 heilig hellig święty sagrado святой helig เป็นที่เคารพบูชา kutsal linh thiêng 神圣的

References in classic literature ?

"The Holy Therns eat human flesh," she answered me; "but only that which has died beneath the sucking lips of a plant man--flesh from which the defiling blood of life has been drawn.

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Methought there was another here, but it must have been this holy man talking to himself."

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"Two and thirty of the seniors and fifteen of the novices, most holy father.

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"Just at Christmastime I was deemed worthy to partake of the holy and heavenly sacrament at the shrine of the saint.

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For months the great pleasure excursion to Europe and the Holy Land was chatted about in the newspapers everywhere in America and discussed at countless firesides.

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To create itself freedom, and give a holy Nay even unto duty: for that, my brethren, there is need of the lion.

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"Earth man," he cried, "you have earned a more ignoble death than now lies within our weakened power to inflict upon you; but that the death you die tonight may be doubly bitter, know you that when you have passed, your widow becomes the wife of Matai Shang, Hekkador of the Holy Therns, for a Martian year.

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1-25) From the Heliconian Muses let us begin to sing, who hold the great and holy mount of Helicon, and dance on soft feet about the deep-blue spring and the altar of the almighty son of Cronos, and, when they have washed their tender bodies in Permessus or in the Horse's Spring or Olmeius, make their fair, lovely dances upon highest Helicon and move with vigorous feet.

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That holy dream -- that holy dream, While all the world were chiding, Hath cheered me as a lovely beam A lonely spirit guiding.

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AN Itinerant Preacher who had wrought hard in the moral vineyard for several hours whispered to a Holy Deacon of the local church:

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The good MacW- would not even come out to his meals, and fed solitarily in his holy of holies from a tray covered with a white napkin.

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'Because,' said Kim stoutly, 'he is holy, and thinks upon matters hidden from thee.'