vesper
Americannoun
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(initial capital letter) the evening star, especially Venus; Hesperus.
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Also called vesper bell. a bell rung at evening.
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(sometimes initial capital letter) vespers,
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a religious service in the late afternoon or the evening.
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the sixth of the seven canonical hours, or the service for it, occurring in the late afternoon or the evening.
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Roman Catholic Church. a part of the office to be said in the evening by those in major orders, frequently made a public ceremony in the afternoons or evenings of Sundays and holy days.
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Anglican Church. evensong.
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Archaic. evening.
adjective
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of, pertaining to, appearing in, or proper to the evening.
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of or relating to vespers.
noun
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an evening prayer, service, or hymn
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an archaic word for evening
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(modifier) of or relating to vespers
noun
Etymology
Origin of vesper
1350–1400; Middle English, partly < Latin: evening, evening star; partly < Old French vespres evening service < Medieval Latin vesperās, accusative plural of Latin vespera, feminine variant of vesper; cognate with Greek hésperos; akin to west
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
For years we thought vesper flights were simply swifts flying higher up to sleep on the wind.
From New York Times • Jul. 29, 2020
Their vesper flights take them to the top of what is called the convective boundary layer.
From New York Times • Jul. 29, 2020
Me, I sang Laura Nyro’s “Buy and Sell,” which says, among other things, “death tolls like a vesper bell.”
From Slate • Dec. 8, 2019
On another occasion, I ordered a vesper and got a negroni.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 27, 2014
Virginia's acquaintance was made almost instantly by three pale-faced curates, and so well did their friendship prosper, that they soon sang at nightfall with her a beautiful vesper hymn.
From The New Paul and Virginia Positivism on an Island by Mallock, W. H. (William Hurrell)
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.
