deity

[ dee-i-tee ]

noun

, plural de·i·ties.

1. a god or goddess.
2. divine character or nature, especially that of the Supreme Being; divinity.
3. the estate or rank of a god:

   The king attained deity after his death.

4. a person or thing revered as a god or goddess:

   a society in which money is the only deity.

5. the De·i·ty, God; Supreme Being.

deity

¹

/ ˈdeɪtɪ; ˈdiːɪ- /

noun

1. a god or goddess
2. the state of being divine; godhead
3. the rank, status, or position of a god
4. the nature or character of God

Deity

²

/ ˈdeɪtɪ; ˈdiːɪ- /

noun

1. the Deity
   the Deity the Supreme Being; God

Other Words From

• su·per·de·i·ty noun plural superdeities

Word History and Origins

Origin of deity¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English deite, from Old French, from Late Latin deitāt- (stem of deitās ), equivalent to Latin dei- (combining form of deus “god”) + -tāt- -ty ², formed after Latin dīvīnitās divinity

Word History and Origins

Origin of deity¹

C14: from Old French, from Late Latin deitās, from Latin deus god

Example Sentences

Dissections of her politics aside, Didion will forever be a certain type of person’s idea of a deity—the literary, the cool.

From Time

Martin didn’t hear from any deities, but plenty of other trippers have.

From Popular-Science

Maintaining enough of a belief in the mechanics of the universe to entrust your life to them — something we all do all the time — seems like solid footing, not on the same level as trusting in an unseen deity or other spirits.

From Vox

These actions tended to follow the same pattern across participants, such as holding an oil lamp or incense stick and moving it slowly clockwise before the statue of a deity.

From Science News

To that end, Raijin is the deity of thunder and lightning who unleashes his tempests with wielding of his hammer and beating of drums.

From Realm of History

Beyoncé has, for close to a decade now, been a deity in entertainment: untouchable, successful, divine.

From The Daily Beast

For his tireless assault on evolutionary biology and downsizing the deity to fit within science, I give Meyer second place.

From The Daily Beast

Logistics wins the day, and the Supreme Deity is, at this juncture, nowhere to be seen.

From The Daily Beast

In the background, outside, is Papa Legba, who is a Loa, the word for a Voodoo deity.

From The Daily Beast

Meanwhile our movie theaters have become temples for superheroes—in the absence of God, Hollywood has offered us a new deity.

From The Daily Beast

In short, he is the creature of this 'Joss'—this home-made deity—to which he bows down and worships.

From Project Gutenberg

This is their great mistake, and arises from a misconception of the character and ways of Deity.

From Project Gutenberg

It was the case in Peru, where the Inca was the direct representative on earth of the solar deity.

From Project Gutenberg

In fact, the highest of these claims, that of the existence of a deity, must lie forever beyond its reach.

From Project Gutenberg

Origen, Ambrose, and Augustine unite in prohibiting the representation of the Deity by any material object.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• divinity
• idol
• immortal