Ezra
Americannoun
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a Jewish scribe and prophet of the 5th century b.c., who with Nehemiah led the revival of Judaism in Palestine.
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a book of the Bible bearing his name. Ezr.
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a male given name: from a Hebrew word meaning “help.”
noun
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a Jewish priest of the 5th century bc , who was sent from Babylon by the Persian king Artaxerxes I to reconstitute observance of the Jewish law and worship in Jerusalem after the captivity
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the book recounting his efforts to perform this task
Etymology
Origin of Ezra
From Late Latin Ezras, ulimately from Hebrew ʿezrā “help”
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.
In fairness, Mr. Trump succeeded in pressing China to free a jailed Christian pastor, Ezra Jin, whose children are U.S. citizens.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
The final day line-up features performances from CMAT, Niall Horan, Myles Smith and Ezra Collective, as festivalgoers make the most of the last day of live music, sunshine and entertainment.
From BBC ● May 24, 2026
Function also acquired Ezra, a maker of diagnostic scans, last year.
From Barron's ● May 21, 2026
Ezra Klein, the center-left New York Times columnist who is not particularly close to Piker’s politics, defended him against the antisemitism charges.
From Salon ● May 2, 2026
Sheed wrote: “Of Ezra Pound, as of Bobby Fischer, all that can be decently said is that his colleagues admire him. There is no reason for anyone else to.”
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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.
