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Holy Week

American  

noun

  1. the week preceding Easter Sunday.


Holy Week British  

noun

  1. the week preceding Easter Sunday

"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

Etymology

Origin of Holy Week

1700–10; translation of Italian settimana santa


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:

Leo has repeatedly denounced ongoing global conflicts in recent weeks, using a series of Holy Week addresses to warn against what he has described as a growing indifference to war and suffering.

From BBC ● Apr. 5, 2026

Last year, Holy Week was the setting for the Argentine pontiff's final public appearances, during which he appeared frail and short of breath.

From Barron's ● Apr. 1, 2026

Holy Week, one of the most sacred periods in the Christian calendar, centers on themes of sacrifice, suffering and redemption — making the address a direct moral intervention at a moment of global tension.

From Salon ● Mar. 29, 2026

At the heart of the Good Friday and Holy Saturday sections were four responsories from Carlo Gesualdo’s 1611 collection for Holy Week.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2025

I joined in Padre Ignacio’s Holy Week activities, going to the nightly novenas and daily mass.

From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez

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