Diwali

Also Di·va·li,

[dih-wah-lee, ‐-vah‐, duh‐]

noun

1. the Hindu festival of lights, celebrated as a religious holiday throughout India, falling between mid-October and mid-November.

Diwali

/ dɪˈwɑːlɪ /

noun

1. a major Hindu religious festival, honouring Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth. Held over the New Year according to the Vikrama calendar, it is marked by feasting, gifts, and the lighting of lamps

Example Sentences

On Monday, FBI director Kash Patel posted a simple message on X to mark Diwali.

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For Vijaya Selvaraju, Diwali celebrations while growing up in the suburbs of Toronto centered around her mother’s home cooking — namely, the sweets.

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Confections — puddings, custards, fried pastries and milk cake galore — are a key, rather necessary, part of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights.

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When it comes to Diwali sweets, there’s no “right” or “wrong” way to enjoy them.

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But if you’re looking to indulge in traditional, homemade Diwali sweets, Selvaraju’s tried-and-trusted recipes are guaranteed to make this year’s celebrations all the more memorable.

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When To Use

What is Diwali?

Diwali is a major Hindu festival popularly called the “festival of lights.” Generally, Diwali is often considered a celebration of the victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.The festival commemorates different specific things in different places and among different communities. It is often associated with the goddess Lakshmi or with Rama (an avatar of the god Vishnu). For some Hindus, Diwali marks the start of the New Year.Diwali is also celebrated by some Sikhs, Jains, and Buddhists, though they may interpret and observe it differently.Diwali is a five-day festival, but its third day is typically observed as the main celebration.Diwali is pronounced dih-WAH-lee or dih-VAH-lee and can also be spelled Divali and Dewali. Other variants include Deepavali and Deepawali.