David

American  

[dey-vid, dah-vuht, da-veed, dah-veeth] / ˈdeɪ vɪd, ˈdɑ vət, daˈvid, dɑˈvið /

noun

1. died c970 b.c., the second king of Israel, reigned c1010–c970, successor to Saul: slayer of the Philistine giant Goliath.

2. Also called Dewi Sant.  Saint. a.d. c510–601?, Welsh bishop: patron saint of Wales.

3. Gerard 1460?–1523, Flemish artist.

4. Jacques Louis 1748–1825, French painter.

5. a city in SW Panama.

6. a male given name: from a Hebrew word meaning “beloved.”

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David British  

/ ˈdeɪvɪd /

noun

1. the second king of the Hebrews (about 1000–962 _bc ), who united Israel as a kingdom with Jerusalem as its capital

2. Elizabeth . 1914–92, British cookery writer. Her books include Mediterranean Food (1950) and An Omelette and a Glass of Wine (1984)

3. Jacques Louis (ʒɑk lwi). 1748–1825, French neoclassical painter of such works as the Oath of the Horatii (1784), Death of Socrates (1787), and The Intervention of the Sabine Women (1799). He actively supported the French Revolution and became court painter to Napoleon Bonaparte in 1804; banished at the Bourbon restoration

4. Saint . 6th century _ad , Welsh bishop; patron saint of Wales. Feast day: March 1

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David ¹ Cultural  

1. A great king of the Israelites in the Old Testament. David was a shepherd in his boyhood. As a youth, he asked for King Saul's permission to fight Goliath, the giant Philistine warrior whom all the other Israelites were afraid to face. Despite his small size, David managed to kill Goliath by hitting him in the forehead with a stone flung from a sling. King Saul then gave David command of his army, but he grew jealous of him and tried to kill him; David spent many years fleeing from Saul. After Saul's death, David was made king of the Israelites and served nobly, despite occasional lapses, such as an affair with Bathsheba; he had Bathsheba's husband killed so that he could marry her. Many of the Psalms are attributed to David, who was famed as a harpist. His descendants, the House of David, included Solomon and the subsequent kings of Israel and Judah; according to the Gospels, Jesus was descended from David.

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David ² Cultural  

1. A large marble statue made by Michelangelo of the biblical king David. Michelangelo portrays him as a youth just about to do battle with the giant Goliath.

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Discover More

A “David and Goliath” contest is an unequal one in which one side is far bigger or more numerous than the other.

Example Sentences

In Washington, attorney David Sobel last month sued to find out how the interpretive sign about Senator Francis Griffith Newlands was removed from the fountain near his home.

From Barron's • May 17, 2026

Still, Mizuho analyst David Bellinger was more cautious on Walmart heading into the results.

From MarketWatch • May 17, 2026

“There’s not a whole lot of support in New Jersey for subsidizing Norwegians staying in New York,” said David Wildstein, the former Port Authority official known for his role in the Chris Christie-era “Bridgegate” scandal.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 17, 2026

Lloyd Jenkins, along with his parents Margaret and David, pleaded guilty earlier this month to damaging a protected wildlife site over a period of eight years on land in the Mwnt area of Ceredigion.

From BBC • May 16, 2026

At last, on April 23, nine days after the assassination, John Wilkes Booth and David Herold set foot on Virginia soil.

From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson