east

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The word evokes some combination of (1) the sacred East to which Christians and Muslims both pray; (2) the Orient (which is simply the Latin for ‘east’) as traditional antithesis to the modern secular West; (3) the Orthodox or Eastern Church with its historic mission to preserve the orderly values of the Eastern Roman Empire, as much against a decadent West as against Islam; (4) the settled and tamed East coast of North America; and (5) the Eastern bloc of communist states, centred upon the USSR, which the United States and its allies opposed during the Cold War.

— Charles Jones

Normally, churches have the main altar at the eastern end, and alters in side chapels set against east walls; some early Christian writers recommend those praying out of doors to face east, as the rising sun symbolizes God (or Christ) as the Light of the World; it was also thought that when Christ returns on Doomsday he will appear like a blaze of lightning in the east (Matthew 24: 27). These beliefs affected the layout of burials, both inside churches and in churchyards; for preference, graves should lie east-and-west, with the body facing eastwards.

IN BRIEF: The cardinal compass point that is at 90 degrees, and directly across from west.

If you want to go east, don't go west. — Sri Ramakrishna, (1836-1886), Hindu reformer.

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sign description: The E-handshape moves to the side in front of the body.

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The east, as the direction from which the sun and other celestial bodies rise, naturally symbolizes new beginnings and rebirths. Dreams about the East (in the sense of the Orient) have other associations, sometimes of a spiritual nature. For someone living in the Midwest or California, "back East" has entirely different connotations.

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For a list of words related to east, see:

• Dimensions and Directions - east: direction of sunrise; direction to one’s right when facing north

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See words rhyming with "east."

  See crossword solutions for the clue East.

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - øst, østlig retning, Østen, Østeuropa, den østlige del
adv. - østligt, østpå, mod øst, østligere
adj. - østlig, østre-, østvendt, øst-

idioms:

• east End    East End

Français (French)
n. - est, orient, levant (arch)
adv. - à/dans l'est, à/vers l'est, en direction de l'est
adj. - de/à l'est, oriental

idioms:

• East End    les quartiers pauvres et populeux de la partie est de (Londres, Glasgow, etc)

Deutsch (German)
n. - Osten
adv. - ostwärts, östlich
adj. - östlich, Ost-

idioms:

• East End    östlicher Teil Londons

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - ανατολή
adv. - ανατολικά/-ώς, προς ανατολάς
adj. - ανατολικός

idioms:

• east End    Ανατολικό Λονδίνο

Italiano (Italian)
Oriente, orientale

idioms:

• east End    East End

Português (Portuguese)
n. - leste (m), Oriente (m)
adv. - para leste
adj. - oriental

idioms:

• east End    bairro (m) popular de Londres

Русский (Russian)
восток, восточный

idioms:

• east End    Ист-Энд

Español (Spanish)
n. - este, parte oriental
adv. - en el este, al este
adj. - hacia el este, el lado este, al final de una iglesia, donde está el altar

idioms:

• East End    parte oriental de Londres

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - öst
adv. - österut
adj. - östlig, östra

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
东方, 东, 向东方, 朝东方, 东方的, 向东的

idioms:

• East End    东区, 东端, 东头

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 東方, 東
adv. - 向東方, 朝東方
adj. - 東方的, 向東的

idioms:

• East End    東區, 東端, 東頭

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 동쪽
adv. - 동쪽에
adj. - 동쪽의

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - ニューイングランド, 東, 東部地方, 東洋
adj. - 東の, 東部の, 東からの
adv. - 東へ

idioms:

• East End    イーストエンド

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מזרח‬
adv. - ‮מזרחה‬
adj. - ‮מזרחי‬

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