one of several deities, especially a male deity, presiding over some portion of worldly affairs.
an image of a deity; an idol.
any deified person or object.
a nebulous powerful force imagined to be responsible for one's fate.
The god of poker dealt me two aces.
Theater. gods,
the upper balcony in a theater.
the spectators in this part of the balcony.
the Supreme Being, worshiped as the creator or ultimate source of the universe.
the Supreme Being according to a particular religion or conception.
She called upon Allah, the God of Islam, for help.
the Supreme Being considered with reference to a particular attribute.
May the God of mercy comfort you.
a supernatural being, who is worshipped as the controller of some part of the universe or some aspect of life in the world or is the personification of some force
an image, idol, or symbolic representation of such a deity
any person or thing to which excessive attention is given
money was his god
a man who has qualities regarded as making him superior to other men
(in plural) the gallery of a theatre
theol the sole Supreme Being, eternal, spiritual, and transcendent, who is the Creator and ruler of all and is infinite in all attributes; the object of worship in monotheistic religions
to behave in an imperious or superior manner
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English; cognate with Dutch god, German Gott, Old Norse goth, Gothic guth
see origin at god ( def. )
A god is a supreme being or deity, and it's spelled with a lowercase g when you're not referring to the God of Christian, Jewish, or Muslim tradition. The ancient Greeks had many gods — including Zeus, Apollo, and Poseidon. A physical representation of a deity is also called a god. If you go to Hawaii, you can even buy a god in a gift shop — a statue or idol that represents one of the Hawaiian gods, like a figure of the god Pele. The word god also refers to a man of superior quality or exceptional beauty. Elvis Presley was considered a god by many teenage girls in the late 1950s.
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
After studying classics at Cambridge, his acting career led to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the role of Loki, the god of mischief and “the boundary crosser.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
In the filmmaker’s imagination, the trick of hiding Greek warriors inside a wood contraption was more believable if it looked like a waterlogged offering to a god left by a departed army.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
Its dominant object, a bronze sculpture of the god Veiovis, dates to the first century A.D., after Etruscans became Roman citizens.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
The angry sea god Poseidon is reduced to rumors; mighty Zeus withheld to a few well-timed thunderclaps.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
The dockyard was vast and isolated—the ideal place for, say, a renegade god and his horde of demons to settle in.
From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda
Long before the 1956 release of “And God Created Woman,” when Brigitte Bardot drew the elite’s gaze to this corner of the French Riviera, St. Tropez was a port run on shipbuilding and maritime trade.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
"We thank God that this attack did not turn into a tragedy with loss of life," he said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 19, 2026
Here, Nolan once again returns to his pet themes of playing God, human mistreatment, the passage of time, and bearing witness to the world’s slow, painful destruction.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
Meanwhile, Labour councillor Linda Tift, who was temporarily chairing the meeting, is heard saying "Simon, what are you doing? Oh my God" before calling an adjournment "while we calm things down".
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
Joey confesses in her letter that she has moments of unspeakable loneliness, though she finds comfort in her faith, believing that God has specifically chosen this “strange hidden life” for her.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Stories of Greek and Roman gods in pursuit of pleasure and vengeance, aided by their hounds, are captured in Roman sculpture and paintings of the Renaissance and Baroque.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
Outflanked by cruel and fickle gods at every turn, legendary Greek hero Odysseus outsmarted a one-eyed giant, suffered through the bewitching Sirens’ song and braved the Underworld’s dead denizens.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
So, every victory represents progress in the tournament but also one more opportunity to enjoy the man who managed to reach the same heights as Diego Maradona in our pantheon of football gods.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
History has also taught us that the gods like to dish out nasty surprises every few years: dot-com bubbles, subprime mortgage crises, pandemics, etc.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 16, 2026
“What have the demigods given you? They have erased your old self, everything you were. Titans and giants...we are meant to be the foes of the gods and their children. Are we not?”
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
This last old man, Whom with a crack'd heart I haue sent to Rome, Lou'd me, aboue the measure of a Father, Nay godded me indeed.
From Coriolanus by Shakespeare, William
The earth not paeans thee, nor serves thy hest, Be godded not by Heaven! avert thy face, And leave to blank disgrace The oblivious world! unsceptre thee of state and place!
From New Poems by Thompson, Francis
This last old man, Whom with crack'd heart I have sent to Rome, Lov'd me above the measure of a father; Nay, godded me indeed.
From Coriolanus by Shakespeare, William
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
