feria
1 Americannoun
noun
noun
Usage
What does feria mean? Feria is a word used in the Roman Catholic Church to refer to a weekday on which no feast is celebrated. In this context, a feria is any weekday (Monday through Friday) that doesn’t celebrate a holy mystery, event, or person (such as a saint). Days that celebrate one of these are called feast days. The plural of feria is feriae or ferias. The adjective form of this meaning of feria is ferial, as in Monday is a ferial day. The religious sense of feria is not commonly used today, even among most Catholics. You’re much more likely to hear the word feria in Spanish, in which it refers to a local fair or festival, especially one to celebrate a local saint. Example: Friday was a feria because there was no religious feast celebrated.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of feria
First recorded 1760–65; from Late Latin: “day of the week” (e.g. secunda fēria “second day, Monday”); in Latin only plural fēriae “holidays”; see fair 2
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.
See Examples For:
Swinging into the spirit of the feria, Jackie donned the traditional comb and mantilla to accompany Garrigues to her second bullfight.
From Time Magazine Archive
The diversions of the feria struck me as innocent, perhaps childish; but there was none of the coarseness and the squalor of a fair in England.
From The Story of Seville by Hartley, C. Gasquoine (Catherine Gasquoine)
The seventh day of the week was dedicated by the Romans to Saturn, and called, in honour of him, Dies Saturni, feria septima.
From The Mysteries of All Nations Rise and Progress of Superstition, Laws Against and Trials of Witches, Ancient and Modern Delusions Together With Strange Customs, Fables, and Tales by Grant, James, archaeologist
The greatest festival the world has ever seen, the carnival, feria, fiesta to beat them all.
From Unborn Tomorrow by Freas, Kelly
During the feria, the proud horsemen wear leather aprons something like our cowboys' chaps over their tight gray riding pants.
From Getting to know Spain by Lambo, Don
In the Augustan age the feriae stativae were very numerous, as may be seen from what we possess of the Fasti of Ovid.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 2 "Fairbanks, Erastus" to "Fens" by Various
Of a similar nature—marking, as Ovid tells us, the completion of the sowing—was the feriae sementivae or Paganalia, associated with the earth-goddesses, Ceres and Tellus.
From The Religion of Ancient Rome by Bailey, Cyril
The feriae sementivae were held in the spring, and the Ambarvalia in autumn, both in honour of Ceres.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 2 "Fairbanks, Erastus" to "Fens" by Various
Some remarks upon the numerous "mummeries" and festas of the inhabitants lead him into a long digression upon the feriae of the Romans.
From Travels through France and Italy by Smollett, T. (Tobias)
Besides, every private family had a number of feriae, kept either by way of rejoicing for some benefit, or mourning for some calamity.
From Travels through France and Italy by Smollett, T. (Tobias)
Its ferias are tremendously worldly; but they are none the less stupendous religious fêtes.
From Carmen Ariza by Stocking, Charles Francis
In the Breviary, before the recent reform, twelve psalms were recited in the first nocturn of Sundays and on ferias.
From The Divine Office by Quigley, Edward J.
The rearrangement secured the recitation of the whole Psalter once a week, the length of the office on Sundays and ferias was reduced, while the complexities of the calendar were simplified.
From Pope Pius the Tenth by Forbes, F. A. (Frances Alice)
Ferias are divided into three classes, major ferias, privileged ferias and non-privileged.
From The Divine Office by Quigley, Edward J.
The collect of a ferial Office is found in Office of the previous Sunday, except in ferias of Lent and Rogation days which have special and proper collects.
From The Divine Office by Quigley, Edward J.
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.
