bless
Americanverb (used with object)
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blesses,
present (3rd person singular)
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blessed,
past participle, past
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blest,
past participle, past
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blessing
present participle
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to consecrate or sanctify by a religious rite; make or pronounce holy.
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to request of God the bestowal of divine favor on.
Bless this house.
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to bestow good of any kind upon.
a nation blessed with peace.
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to extol as holy; glorify.
Bless the name of the Lord.
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to protect or guard from evil (usually used as an interjection).
Bless you! Bless your innocent little heart!
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to condemn or curse.
I'll be blessed if I can see your reasoning. Bless me if it isn't my old friend!
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to make the sign of the cross over or upon.
The Pope blessed the multitude.
verb
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to consecrate or render holy, beneficial, or prosperous by means of a religious rite
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to give honour or glory to (a person or thing) as divine or holy
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to call upon God to protect; give a benediction to
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to worship or adore (God); call or hold holy
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(often passive) to grant happiness, health, or prosperity to
they were blessed with perfect peace
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(usually passive) to endow with a talent, beauty, etc
she was blessed with an even temper
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rare to protect against evil or harm
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(interjection) an exclamation of well-wishing
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(interjection)
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a traditional phrase said to a person who has just sneezed
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an exclamation of well-wishing or surprise
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(interjection) an exclamation of surprise
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to be desperately poor
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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blesssimple
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blessessimple
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have blessedperfect
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have blestperfect
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has blessedperfect
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has blestperfect
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am blessingprogressive
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are blessingprogressive
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is blessingprogressive
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have been blessingperfect progressive
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has been blessingperfect progressive
Past
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blessedsimple
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blestsimple
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had blessedperfect
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had blestperfect
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was blessingprogressive
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were blessingprogressive
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had been blessingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bless
First recorded before 950; Middle English blessen, Old English blētsian, blēdsian “to consecrate” (originally done with blood), earlier *blōdisōian ( blōd “blood” + -isō- derivational suffix + -ian verb suffix); see blood
Explanation
To bless is to offer a holy seal of approval, like when a priest blesses water, making holy water. It’s also what people say when you sneeze: bless you, which is short for “may God bless you.” If you go back far enough, the word bless is related to the word blood, because of the blood sprinkled on pagan alters. It moved on to mean “to praise,” and now it’s a little of both (minus the pagans). In religious contexts, things are made holy when they're blessed. Also, people are blessed by good things that happen. People often say things like "I've been blessed with good health.” That means they were lucky to receive such good things.
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.
See Examples For:
When Helmut Kohl pushed for France and the U.K. to bless reunification, he offered to limit the country’s military.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
"God bless you Dolly Parton my friend, I am not the only one on Earth who will love you for ever and ever."
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
The jokers Toth and Jackson, bless them, keep things endearing and funny.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026
“So happy anniversary. God bless you, and God bless the United States.”
From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026
“Haven’t one to bless myself with. I thought perhaps you’d had some news from home..”
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
These are from the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus blesses the poor, the meek and the peacemakers, and then calls on his followers to turn the other cheek and love their enemies.
From Salon ● Jul. 1, 2026
If California blesses liability for the pace of innovation, other states will feel the pull.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026
And his mother blesses him with water and basil leaves to keep the bad vibrations away.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 27, 2023
In González’s view, “God blesses those who shake hands with those who need it. I hope that the politicians think of us and give us that helping hand that we need.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2023
He blesses me again, asks me to pray for him, and I’m happy trotting through the rainy streets of Limerick knowing Theresa is in heaven with the cough gone.
From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt
She mailed him a copy, with this inscription: “To Dr. John Truman with deep respect and gratitude for your high ideals and continued faithful service to children. Be blessed always. Diana.”
From Slate ● Nov. 12, 2026
The mere fact of the US-born pontiff entering Zana means "we are already more than blessed," she told AFP.
From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026
“It’s more blessed to give than receive,” said Allen.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 31, 2026
That issue arose, and not for the first time, when Musk in effect blessed the idea of merging Tesla and SpaceX, his two biggest public companies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026
“Yes, and who remembers the schoolmaster of them early years, him whose final resting place is right outside in the Balm of Gilead graveyard? Who remembers the terrible Increase Whittlesey of blessed memory?”
From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck
It is “twice blest; it blesseth him that gives and him that takes.”
From New York Times ● Dec. 24, 2017
"The nations, not so blest as thee / Must, in their turns, to tyrants fall; / While thou shalt flourish great and free, / The dread and envy of them all."
From BBC ● Jan. 15, 2016
"In a land where movement is virtue, where the echo of heels clicking rapidly on pavement is inordinately blest, it is a grand, defiant, and edifying gesture to lie down for six months."
From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2015
I blest His name that gave and took, That laid my goods now in the dust.
From The Guardian ● May 26, 2014
He told them that those who were in a high state of joy, with not a care to vex them, were called blest.
From Young Folks' Bible in Words of Easy Reading The Sweet Stories of God's Word in the Language of Childhood by Josephine Pollard
Tell me why it was important to you to get his blessing and what it was like knowing that this person, who’s still very much alive, was about to watch it?
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 12, 2026
Addressing residents, staff and volunteers in Spanish, Leo said disabled people were "not a burden on society" but "a blessing."
From Barron's ● Nov. 9, 2026
As a paediatric nurse herself, she previously said her medical knowledge had been both "a blessing and a curse".
From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026
So with my mom’s blessing, we walked to passport control.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
“Yes. It’s an Arabic word that means ‘with God’s blessing.’
From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar
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