bless

(blĕs)
tr.v., blessed, or blest (blĕst), bless·ing, bless·es.

1. To make holy by religious rite; sanctify.
2. To make the sign of the cross over so as to sanctify.
3. To invoke divine favor upon.
4. To honor as holy; glorify: Bless the Lord.
5. To confer well-being or prosperity on.
6. To endow, as with talent.

idiom:

bless you

1. Used to wish good health to a person who has just sneezed.

[Middle English blessen, from Old English blētsian, to consecrate.]

blesser bless'er n.

WORD HISTORY   The verb bless comes from Old English blœdsian, blēdsian, blētsian, "to bless, wish happiness, consecrate." Although the Old English verb has no cognates in any other Germanic language, it can be shown to derive from the Germanic noun *blōdan, "blood." Blœdsian therefore literally means "to consecrate with blood, sprinkle with blood." The Angles, Saxons, and Jutes, the early Germanic migrants to Britain, used blœdsian for their pagan sacrifices. After they converted to Christianity, blœdsian acquired new meanings as a result of its use in translations of the Latin Bible, but it kept its pagan Germanic senses as well.

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verb

To make sacred by a religious rite: consecrate, hallow, sanctify. See religion.

v

Definition: grant, bestow
Antonyms: deny, disallow, disapprove, refuse, veto

v

Definition: sanctify
Antonyms: condemn, curse, damn

IN BRIEF: To make happy or fortunate. To make holy through a ceremony.

But when we work for others, our efforts return to bless us. — Sidney Powell

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sign description: Both hands start folded down at the mouth and open up to flat hands as they move away from the body.

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For a list of words related to bless, see:

• Praise, Exaltation, Flattery, and Applause - bless: (vb) speak kindly of; wish well; extol

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See words rhyming with "bless."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Bless.

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Dansk (Danish)
v. tr. - velsigne

idioms:

• bless with    velsignet med, gudsbenådet

Nederlands (Dutch)
zegenen, heiligen, (God) verheerlijken, vervloeken

Français (French)
v. tr. - bénir

Deutsch (German)
v. - segnen

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - ευλογώ, δοξάζω, δοξολογώ, προικίζω (με χαρές)

idioms:

• bless with    προικίζω με

Italiano (Italian)
benedire

idioms:

• bless with    dotare di

Português (Portuguese)
v. - abençoar

idioms:

• bless with    abençoar com

Русский (Russian)
благословлять

idioms:

• bless with    обладать чем-либо

Español (Spanish)
v. tr. - bendecir

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - välsigna, prisa

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
祝福, 哎呀!我的天哪!, 保佑

idioms:

• bless with    祝福...

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
v. tr. - 祝福, 哎呀!我的天哪!, 保佑

idioms:

• bless with    祝福...

한국어 (Korean)
v. tr. - ~을 신성하게 하다, ~에게 은총을 베풀다, ~을 찬송하다

idioms:

• bless with    은총을 내리다

日本語 (Japanese)
v. - 祝福する, 授ける, 清める, 賛美する

idioms:

• bless with    恵みをたれる

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) بارك, قدس, , أنعم على, وهب‏

עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - ‮בירך, קידש‬

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