one of a class of spiritual beings; a celestial attendant of God. In medieval angelology, angels constituted the lowest of the nine celestial orders (seraphim, cherubim, thrones, dominations or dominions, virtues, powers, principalities or princedoms, archangels, and angels).
a conventional representation of such a being, in human form, with wings, usually in white robes.
a messenger, especially of God.
a person who performs a mission of God or acts as if sent by God.
an angel of mercy.
a person having qualities generally attributed to an angel, as beauty, purity, or kindliness.
a person whose actions and thoughts are consistently virtuous.
an attendant or guardian spirit.
a deceased person whose soul is regarded as having been accepted into heaven.
a person who provides financial backing for some undertaking, as a play, political campaign, or business venture.
A group of angels entered the mix, providing George the leverage he needed to take the startup company in a new direction.
Angels seek deals that they can exit in less than a decade.
an English gold coin issued from 1470 to 1634, varying in value from 6s. 8d. to 10s. and bearing on its obverse a figure of the archangel Michael killing a dragon.
Slang. an image on a radar screen caused by a low-flying object, as a bird.
theol one of a class of spiritual beings attendant upon God. In medieval angelology they are divided by rank into nine orders: seraphim, cherubim, thrones, dominations (or dominions), virtues, powers, principalities (or princedoms), archangels, and angels
a divine messenger from God
a guardian spirit
a conventional representation of any of these beings, depicted in human form with wings
informal a person, esp a woman, who is kind, pure, or beautiful
informal an investor in a venture, esp a backer of a theatrical production
Also called: angel-noble. a former English gold coin with a representation of the archangel Michael on it, first minted in Edward IV's reign
informal an unexplained signal on a radar screen
Spelling tips for angel The word angel is hard to spell for two reasons. First, it is very close in spelling to angle, as in the space between two lines that meet at a point. Second, the beginning sound [ eyn ] is not spelled the way it sounds. How to spell angel: The first letter of angel is a, not e, because Angels are Amazing. The way to remember that angel ends in an l is that both devil and angel are celestial beings, and they both end in l. Similarly, angle and line are both mathematics terms, and they both end in e.
First recorded before 950; 1890–95 angel for def. 9; Middle English a(u)ngel, from Anglo-French, Old French, from Late Latin angelus, from New Testament Greek ángelos “messenger of God,” special use of Greek ángelos “messenger” (to translate Hebrew mal'ākh ), of disputed origin, frequently connected to ángaros “Persian mounted courier,” suggesting derivation from an uncertain source possibly akin to Akkadian agâru “to hire” or egertu “letter,” Persian angareh “journal, narrative,” or Sanskrit ajira “swift”; replacing Old English engel, from Latin, as above
An angel is a messenger of God, characterized as having human form with wings and a halo. The word suggests goodness, and is often used to refer to someone who offers comfort and aid to others in times of trouble. As a child, you looked like an innocent angel; appearances can be deceiving. The word angel derives from the Greek angelos, meaning "messenger." It is used in the Bible to denote God's attendants, with angels often depicted as being guardians of humans, an idea found in ancient Asian cultures as well. The Biblical sense was continued in a medieval gold coin called an angel, which depicted the archangel Michael. The word has been applied to angel fish, so named because they appear to have wings, and nurses, often called "angels of mercy."
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"I never thought I would be rescued, and you arrived like an angel, opened the door, and said, 'I'm here to help you...' I love you, brother. I will love you forever."
From Barron's ● Jul. 4, 2026
When the angel warned him of danger, St. Joseph didn’t deliberate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026
It opens in a London pub, where Rodrigo is besotted by a boy who "looks like an angel on the walls of Versailles".
From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2026
The state continues to see an unprecedented uptick in poisonings and deaths associated with death cap, or Amanita phalloides; and western destroying angel, Amanita ocreata, mushrooms, according to the California Department of Public Health.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 30, 2026
“Steven always thought he had an angel on his shoulder,” said Valerie.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Sources close to Real say key negotiators Jose Angel and Juni Calafat have been scouting Diomande for about five years, but were not reactive to Diomande's World Cup performances.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
On Thursday, the White House posted an AI-generated picture of a Blue Angel jet over a beach with people calmly looking skyward with the caption “It’s okay to love America.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026
Huckle called Angel Island “a marriage of natural beauty with great, powerful, historic information.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
The home, which was built in 1959, was sold to Bloom by Mexican architect Miguel Angel Aragonés, who had expanded and enhanced the property’s midcentury modern architecture during his ownership.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026
I think about Angel shopping in Seven Baskets and wonder if her family’s in a motel, too.
From "Isaiah Dunn Is My Hero" by Kelly J. Baptist
Usually these clips follow a set pattern: a man in uniform embraces his loved ones, then slowly walks up a staircase into a blue sky, often surrounded by angels.
From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026
On Tuesday, she wrote that Cody had died peacefully surrounded by family and “was welcomed into heaven as thunder bellowed outside, and we laughed because we knew it was a band of angels rejoicing.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026
And after spending years appealing to Butcher’s better angels, Hughie ultimately serves as his mentor’s final restraint.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 10, 2026
For example, their 2013 “Tailored Mosaic” line, inspired by the golden mosaics in the Cathedral of Monreale in Sicily, featured garments adorned with angels, saints and Mary, as well as biblical figures.
From Salon ● May 17, 2026
Did it mean people didn’t really know what they were talking about when they said angels in the first place?
From "Pet" by Akwaeke Emezi
Through his second largest philanthropy, the General Education Board, he angeled Progressive Education.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
