Calvary
noun
Golgotha, the place where Jesus was crucified.
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calvaire.
Calvary
American
[kal-vuh-ree]
/ ˈkæl və ri /
noun
Calvaries
plural
-
Bible. Golgotha, the place where Jesus was crucified.
-
Often calvary a sculptured representation of the Crucifixion, usually erected in the open air.
-
none calvary an experience or occasion of extreme suffering, especially mental suffering.
Calvary
1
British
/ ˈkælvərɪ /
noun
calvary
2
British
/ ˈkælvərɪ /
noun
-
(often capital) a representation of Christ's crucifixion, usually sculptured and in the open air
-
any experience involving great suffering
Calvary
Cultural
Pronunciation
See irrelevant.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of Calvary
First recorded before 1000; from Late Latin Calvāria “Calvary,” from Latin calvāria “a skull,” used to translate Greek kraníon cranium, itself a translation of the Aramaic name; see Golgotha
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:
Pioneer Park used to be Calvary cemetery once upon a time.
From Salon ● May 9, 2026
Actor Gary Lydon who starred in films such as Calvary, The Guard and The Banshees of Inisherin, has died aged 61.
From BBC ● May 3, 2026
At the Calvary Baptist Church in Minneapolis, the doors swung open and shut as locals sought refuge from the biting cold on Sunday.
From BBC ● Jan. 25, 2026
The roof of Calvary Church of Pacific Palisades, a neighborhood landmark, was burning.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 9, 2025
He glanced at the peeling white Calvary Baptist Church up the street from his house.
From "The Serpent King" by Jeff Zentner
Jessie Sheehan, on the other hand, skips the oats and calls in pecans, and a calvary of spices including ginger and nutmeg.
From Salon ● Nov. 12, 2022
But the calvary also isn’t coming — not yet, anyway.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 9, 2022
That same day, a supporter misspelled the word “cavalry” in tweeting that “The calvary is coming, Mr. President!”
From New York Times ● Jan. 6, 2021
His calvary - his enemies would say "deceit" - goes back to 2006.
From BBC ● Mar. 8, 2016
But she speaks at last and each note of that tear-filled voice, by turns faltering, violent and plaintive, brings before my eyes, staring into the darkness, every step of her soul's calvary.
From The Choice of Life by Leblanc, Georgette
Dangerous passions of pride, hatred and selfishness are enthroned in our lives; truth lies prostrate on the rugged hills of nameless Calvaries.
From Time Magazine Archive
The Bretons are commonly accredited as being a most devout race, and certainly devotion could take no more marked turn than the many evidences here to be seen in this "land of Calvaries."
From The Cathedrals of Northern France by McManus, Blanche
Calvaries, or representations of the passion on the Cross, are most frequently encountered in Brittany, so much so, indeed, that it has been called ‘the Land of the Calvaries.’
From Legends & Romances of Brittany by Spence, Lewis
We passed by the Calvaries which keep guard over the Meuse villages, a few trees gathered round the cross.
From Letters of a Soldier 1914-1915 by Chevrillon, André
And I was shown in that Vision the Calvaries of maternity common to all, whether the conception be immaculate, so-called if within the law, or maculate, so-called if without the law.
From A Cry in the Wilderness by Waller, Mary E. (Mary Ella)
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.
