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Definition of Bless
1. Verb. Give a benediction to. "The dying man blessed his son"
Generic synonyms: Arouse, Bring Up, Call Down, Call Forth, Conjure, Conjure Up, Evoke, Invoke, Put Forward, Raise, Stir
Derivative terms: Blessing, Blessing
Antonyms: Curse
2. Verb. Confer prosperity or happiness on.
3. Verb. Make the sign of the cross over someone in order to call on God for protection; consecrate.
4. Verb. Render holy by means of religious rites.
Specialized synonyms: Reconsecrate
Generic synonyms: Declare
Derivative terms: Consecration, Saint, Saint, Sanctification
Antonyms: Desecrate
Definition of Bless
1. v. t. To make or pronounce holy; to consecrate
Definition of Bless
1. Verb. To make something blessed, to confer blessing upon. ¹
2. Verb. (context: Perl programming transitive) (context: past tense only '''blessed''') To turn (a reference) into an object. ¹
3. Interjection. (UK informal) Used as an expression of endearment, or (ironically) belittlement. ¹
¹ Source: wiktionary.com
Definition of Bless
1. to sanctify [v BLESSED or BLEST, BLESSING, BLESSES] - See also: sanctify
Medical Definition of Bless
1. 1. To make or pronounce holy; to consecrate "And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it." (Gen. Ii. 3) 2. To make happy, blithesome, or joyous; to confer prosperity or happiness upon; to grant divine favor to. "The quality of mercy is . . . Twice blest; It blesseth him that gives and him that takes." (Shak) "It hath pleased thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may continue forever before thee." (1 Chron. Xvii. 27 (R. V)) 3. To express a wish or prayer for the happiness of; to invoke a blessing upon; applied to persons. "Bless them which persecute you." (Rom. Xii. 14) 4. To invoke or confer beneficial attributes or qualities upon; to invoke or confer a blessing on, as on food. "Then he took the five loaves and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed them." (Luke ix. 16) 5. To make the sign of the cross upon; to cross (one's self). 6. To guard; to keep; to protect. 7. To praise, or glorify; to extol for excellences. "Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name." (Ps. Ciii. 1) 8. To esteem or account happy; to felicitate. "The nations shall bless themselves in him." (Jer. Iv. 3) 9. To wave; to brandish. "And burning blades about their heads do bless." (Spenser) "Round his armed head his trenchant blade he blest." (Fairfax) This is an old sense of the word, supposed by Johnson, Nares, and others, to have been derived from the old rite of blessing a field by directing the hands to all parts of it. "In drawing [their bow] some fetch such a compass as though they would turn about and bless all the field." Bless me! Bless us! an exclamation of surprise. To bless from, to secure, defend, or preserve from. "Bless me from marrying a usurer." "To bless the doors from nightly harm." (Milton) To bless with, To be blessed with, to favor or endow with; to be favored or endowed with; as, God blesses us with health; we are blessed with happiness. Origin: OE. Blessien, bletsen, AS. Bletsian, bledsian, bloedsian, fr. Bld blood; prob. Originally to consecrate by sprinkling with blood. See Blood. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998)
Lexicographical Neighbors of Bless
Literary usage of Bless
Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:
1. The Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, and Other by Episcopal Church, Church of England (1831)
"O ye Waters that be above the Firmament, bless ye the Lord : praise him, ...
O let the Earth bless the Lord : yea, let it praise him, and magnify him for ..."
2. The Chant and Service Book: Containing the Choral Service for Morning and by Charles Lewis Hutchins (1894)
"2 О ye Angels of the Lord I bless • ye the I Lord : praise him, etc. ... F / 18
О let the Earth I bless the I Lord: yea, let it praise him, and I magnify I ..."
3. The Church Hymnal: Revised and Enlarged in Accordance with the Action of the by Charles Lewis Hutchins, Episcopal Church (1914)
"4 O ye Waters that bo above the firmament I bless • ye the I Lord: praise ...
9 O ye Winds of G6d I bless • ye the I Lord: praise him, and I magnify I him ..."
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