Easter

[ ee-ster ]

/ ˈi stər /

noun

an annual Christian festival in commemoration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, observed on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox, as calculated according to tables based in Western churches on the Gregorian calendar and in Orthodox churches on the Julian calendar.

Also called Easter Sunday. the day on which this festival is celebrated.

the Easter season; the week following Easter.

Origin of Easter

before 900; Middle English ester, Old English ēastre; cognate with German Ostern; orig. name of a goddess and her festival; akin to east

OTHER WORDS FROM Easter

post-Eas·ter, adjectivepre-Eas·ter, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for easter

At the same time, the Easter Elchies House began to deteriorate.
Ester Elchies, The Estate Built By Whiskey||December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The land at Easter Elchies was the ideal place for Reid to set up his business.
Ester Elchies, The Estate Built By Whiskey||December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And I was lucky enough to receive an invitation to stay at Easter Elchies House, the spiritual home at The Macallan.
A Whisky Connoisseur Remembers That First Sip of The Macallan||December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The company soon embarked on a refurbishment of Easter Elchies, opening to the public in 1985.
Ester Elchies, The Estate Built By Whiskey||December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST

At the center of it all is Easter Elchies House—one of the so-called six pillars of the company.
Ester Elchies, The Estate Built By Whiskey||December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Moreover, Sir, if it please your mastership for to understand how your wool was housed ever deal by Easter even.
Medieval People|Eileen Edna Power
Writing of other traditions, 'one of the most beautiful of Easter customs still survives.
Devon, Its Moorlands, Streams and Coasts|Rosalind Northcote
The date of Easter regulates the dates of the other movable feasts.
Smithsonian Institution - United States National Museum - Bulletin 240|Anonymous
The week before Easter is a busy one for the boys and girls in East Lancashire.
Lancashire Folk-lore|John Harland
This, then, was the foundation of Lady Nottingham's Easter party.
Daisy's Aunt|E. F. (Edward Frederic) Benson

British Dictionary definitions for easter

Easter

/ (ˈiːstə) /

noun

the most important festival of the Christian Church, commemorating the Resurrection of Christ: falls on the Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal equinox

Also called: Easter Sunday, Easter Day the day on which this festival is celebrated

the period between Good Friday and Easter Monday

Other words from Easter

Related adjective: paschal

Word Origin for Easter

Old English ēastre, after a Germanic goddess Eostre; related to Old High German ōstarūn Easter, Old Norse austr to the east, Old Slavonic ustru like summer

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

Cultural definitions for easter

Easter

An important religious festival among Christians (see also Christian); it commemorates the Resurrection of Jesus after his Crucifixion. Easter is celebrated on a Sunday in spring, and the season of Easter, a time of rejoicing, continues for several weeks. The penitential season of Lent is a time of preparation for Easter.