bliss
1 Americannoun
-
supreme happiness; utter joy or contentment.
wedded bliss.
- Antonyms:
- misery
-
Theology. the joy of heaven.
-
heaven; paradise.
the road to eternal bliss.
-
Archaic. a cause of great joy or happiness.
idioms
noun
-
Sir Arthur (Edward Drummond), 1891–1975, English composer.
-
Tasker Howard, 1853–1930, U.S. general.
noun
-
perfect happiness; serene joy
-
the ecstatic joy of heaven
noun
Synonym Usage
See happiness.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of bliss
First recorded before 1000; Middle English blisse, Old English bliss, blīths, equivalent to blīthe blithe + -s suffix
Explanation
Bliss is a state of complete happiness or joy. Marriage is often associated with this joyous feeling: people who are married and still in love are described as living in wedded bliss. Another common association is heaven or paradise, as in eternal bliss. Bliss is from Middle English blisse, from Old English bliss, blīths. The final -s in this Old English word is actually a suffix and the word itself is related to blīthe, the source of modern English blithe, which means happy.
Vocabulary lists containing bliss
Beowulf vocabulary
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"The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet," Vocabulary from Act 1
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Enjoy! Synonyms for "Pleasure"
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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:
Great waves of warmth, as from a fire blazing in a cozy hearth, flow from the stage in the musical “Buena Vista Social Club,” wrapping the audience in a cocoon of musical bliss.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
That looming first common, boring day after a few weeks of new bliss is gone.
From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2026
By comparison, modern-day insulated car interiors offer aural bliss, but they’re dampening the sound of emergency sirens, law enforcement agencies maintain.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
You don’t want to alienate your mom or dad, or make them feel that you don’t support their late-in-life shot at romantic bliss.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
“It breaks!” he gasped joyfully from the floor, a look of utter bliss covering his face.
From "The Phantom Tollbooth" by Norton Juster
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The Seattle-based artist, Bliss Kolb, previously told the shop that “he would be willing to part with Molly’s twin for $15,000.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
Bliss Cunneen walked away from an Anthropology university course in 2020 to train as a plumber.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
He was stunned to see his grandfather appear on screen, holding his father’s hand at the train station in Fort Bliss.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
Bliss said there are limits on how much data that spectrum can move.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 12, 2026
Bliss sent for him on July 2 immediately after the shooting.
From "Ambushed!" by Gail Jarrow
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.