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Kol Nidre

[ Sephardic Hebrew kawl nee-drey; Ashkenazic Hebrew kohl-nid-ruh, -rey ]
/ Sephardic Hebrew kɔl niˈdreɪ; Ashkenazic Hebrew ˈkoʊl ˈnɪd rə, -reɪ /
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noun Judaism.
a liturgical prayer for recitation at the beginning of the service on the eve of Yom Kippur asking that all unfulfilled vows to God be nullified and all transgressions forgiven.
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Origin of Kol Nidre

<Aramaic kōl all + nidhrē vows, promises

Words nearby Kol Nidre

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Kol Nidre in a sentence

  • A fife and drum band is heard in the distance playing the Kol Nidre.

    Ulysses|James Joyce

British Dictionary definitions for Kol Nidre

Kol Nidre
/ (kɔːl ˈnɪdreɪ, Hebrew kɔl niːˈdre) /

noun Judaism
the evening service with which Yom Kippur begins
the opening prayer of that service, declaring null in advance any purely religious vows one may come to make in the coming year

Word Origin for Kol Nidre

Aramaic kōl nidhrē all the vows; the prayer's opening words
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
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