cherub

[ cher-uhb ]

See synonyms for: cherub cherubical cherubic on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural cher·ubs for 3, 4; cher·u·bim

[cher-uh-bim, -yoo-bim] /ˈtʃɛr ə bɪm, -yʊ bɪm/ for 1, 2.

a celestial being. Genesis 3:24; Ezekiel 1, 10.
Theology. a member of the second order of angels, often represented as a beautiful rosy-cheeked child with wings.

a beautiful or innocent person, especially a child.
a person, especially a child, with a sweet, chubby, innocent face.

Origin of cherub

First recorded before 900; Middle English, from Latin, from Greek, from Hebrew kərūbh; replacing Middle English cherubin, Old English c(h)erubin, cerubim (all singular), from Latin cherūbim, from Greek, from Hebrew kərūbhīm (plural)

Other words from cherub

che·ru·bic [chuh-roo-bik], /tʃəˈru bɪk/, che·ru·bi·cal, adjective
cher·ub·like, adjective

Words Nearby cherub

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cherub in a sentence

Adriana Bottino-Poage is 6 years old, with cherub cheeks and curls that bounce when she laughs.
Today’s kids will live through three times as many climate disasters as their grandparents, study says | Sarah Kaplan | September 26, 2021 | Washington Post
Nearby, plump kidneys churn out requests for water and salt—twin cherubs of the torso.
Stress can literally kill you. Here’s how. | Rachel Feltman | June 30, 2021 | Popular-Science
The haul came from 10 pieces that mostly feature winged cherubs called “war nymphs,” some of which sold thousands of copies.
Inside the Newest Crypto Craze: The NFT | Joshua Eferighe | March 4, 2021 | Ozy
Miley Cyrus morphed from cherub-faced Disney tween into raunchy twerker.
La Roux Discusses New Album ‘Trouble in Paradise,’ the 5-Year Gap, and Embracing Her Androgyny | Marlow Stern | July 6, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The little 17-year-old Russian cherub lutzed and salchowed like she was born for that expressed purpose.
Sotnikova Beat Kim Yu-Na? Figure Skating Is Probably Corrupt (But We Knew That) | Kevin Fallon | February 21, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

With fair skin boosting the expressiveness of her big blue eyes, Kazan resembles a slightly more cherub-faced Jennifer Connelly.
Zoe Kazan Talks About Starring in ‘Ruby Sparks,’ Grandfather Elia Kazan, & More | Marlow Stern | July 26, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
The film opened with two African cherub babies playing in the dirt.
Way Too Cute | Nicole LaPorte | May 6, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
The child actress, now 15, has gone from a dimpled cherub to an undead evildoer in New Moon.
Dakota Fanning Grows Up | Gina Piccalo | November 17, 2009 | THE DAILY BEAST
Therefore God alone is responsible for the acts the man performs in obedience to the cherub's orders.
God and my Neighbour | Robert Blatchford
So I want you to fit up this roof of the kitchen exactly in the way you arranged the garden on the roof at cherub Court.
The Garret and the Garden | R.M. Ballantyne
A decided case of 'up aloft': he looks quite the cherub, does he not?
Frank Fairlegh | Frank E. Smedley
But from the limit whence the cherub continueth not the imp began.
The Varmint | Owen Johnson
And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house.
The Prophet Ezekiel | Arno C. Gaebelein

British Dictionary definitions for cherub

cherub

/ (ˈtʃɛrəb) /

nounplural cherubs or cherubim (ˈtʃɛrəbɪm, -ʊbɪm)

theol a member of the second order of angels, whose distinctive gift is knowledge, often represented as a winged child or winged head of a child
an innocent or sweet child

Origin of cherub

Old English, from Hebrew kěrūbh

Derived forms of cherub

cherubic (tʃəˈruːbɪk) or cherubical, adjective
cherubically, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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