blessing
Americannoun
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the act or words of a person who blesses.
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a special favor, mercy, or benefit.
the blessings of liberty.
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a favor or gift bestowed by God, thereby bringing happiness.
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the invoking of God's favor upon a person.
The son was denied his father's blessing.
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praise; devotion; worship, especially grace said before a meal.
The children took turns reciting the blessing.
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approval or good wishes.
The proposed law had the blessing of the governor.
noun
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the act of invoking divine protection or aid
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the words or ceremony used for this
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a short prayer of thanksgiving before or after a meal; grace
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Also called: brachah. brocho. Judaism
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a short prayer prescribed for a specific occasion and beginning "Blessed art thou, O Lord…"
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a section of the liturgy including a similar formula
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approval; good wishes
her father gave his blessing to the marriage
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the bestowal of a divine gift or favour
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a happy event or state of affairs
a blessing in disguise
Etymology
Origin of blessing
First recorded before 900; Middle English blessinge, blessunge, Old English bletsung, bledsung; equivalent to bless + -ing 1
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.
God’s blessings and mercy for him and his family.
"The lignite monoculture has been both a blessing and a curse for the region," one said emphatically.
From Barron's
When he read it and we got his blessing, we felt really, really good about it.
From Los Angeles Times
"More traditional members of the Church, including conservative evangelicals, many of whom represent quite large churches… became increasingly vocal about what they might do if the blessings went ahead without this full approval procedure."
From BBC
With Musk's blessing, he was appointed as pointman for AI and cryptocurrency policy.
From Barron's
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.