consecrate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to make or declare sacred; set apart or dedicate to the service of a deity.
to consecrate a new church building.
- Antonyms:
- desecrate
-
to make (something) an object of honor or veneration; hallow.
a custom consecrated by time.
-
to devote or dedicate to some purpose.
a life consecrated to science.
-
to admit or ordain to a sacred office, especially to the episcopate.
-
to change (bread and wine) into the Eucharist.
adjective
verb
-
to make or declare sacred or holy; sanctify
-
to dedicate (one's life, time, etc) to a specific purpose
-
to ordain (a bishop)
-
Christianity to sanctify (bread and wine) for the Eucharist to be received as the body and blood of Christ
-
to cause to be respected or revered; venerate
time has consecrated this custom
adjective
Related Words
Other Word Forms
- consecrater noun
- consecration noun
- consecrative adjective
- consecrator noun
- consecratory adjective
- deconsecrate verb (used with object)
- preconsecrate verb (used with object)
- reconsecrate verb (used with object)
- unconsecrative adjective
Etymology
Origin of consecrate
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English consecraten, from Latin consecrātus (past participle of consecrāre ), equivalent to con- + -secr- (variant, in noninitial syllables, of sacer “consecrated, holy”) + -ātus, past participle suffix; con-, sacred, -ate 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.
“It is defined by our congregants and by the strength of our shared purpose. Our crisis, our grief, our loss also contains within it the seeds of a rebirth that we consecrate this evening.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 7, 2026
Capote perfectly captures the sacramental quality of the holiday—how, through the exhaustive labor of polishing and scrubbing, we consecrate the routine rooms of daily existence into a sanctuary for celebration.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 21, 2025
Early converts to what was originally called the Church of Christ, organized in 1830, were encouraged to consecrate all their goods to their new religious community so it could redistribute resources to those in need.
From Salon • Mar. 29, 2023
“It’s designed to celebrate and consecrate the transition of power, and that’s why it matters whether the president, and the soon-to-be former president, attends.”
From Washington Post • Jan. 8, 2021
At church he has the power to forgive sins and consecrate the host.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
