miracle
Americannoun
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miracles
plural
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an effect or extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to a supernatural cause.
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such an effect or event manifesting or considered as a work of God.
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a wonder; marvel.
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a wonderful or surpassing example of some quality.
a miracle of modern acoustics.
noun
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an event that is contrary to the established laws of nature and attributed to a supernatural cause
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any amazing or wonderful event
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a person or thing that is a marvellous example of something
the bridge was a miracle of engineering
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short for miracle play
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(modifier) being or seeming a miracle
a miracle cure
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of miracle
First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English miracle, miracul, from Old French miracle, from Latin mīrāculum, from mīrā(rī) “to wonder at” + -culum -cle 2
Explanation
A miracle is an event so marvelous that it seems like it was sent from above. Catching that foul ball from the stands at the World Series? A miracle! Miracle, a noun meaning “amazing or wonderful occurrence," comes from the Latin miraculum “object of wonder." Dig way back and the word derives from smeiros, meaning "to smile," which is exactly what you do when a miracle happens. To quote the American-French author Anais Nin, “The dream was always running ahead of me. To catch up, to live for a moment in unison with it, that was the miracle.” Just ask any rock star.
Vocabulary lists containing miracle
It's Lit: Hanukkah Words
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The Circuit
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"The Flying Machine" by Ray Bradbury
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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:
However, if stocks are priced too high or purchased with an abundance of debt, a crash can happen, as in 1929–33, when investors “fail to distinguish the miracle from the investment.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 10, 2026
The Crimson had four seconds to pull off a miracle.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
"But somehow the crop turned out bigger and more beautiful than in previous years. It was a miracle," she said, recalling some 20-hour days in the field.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
Now, when you think about the miracle of the fishes and the loaves in each of the four first books of the New Testament, it’s that important.
From Salon ● Sep. 30, 2026
“Oh. Well. Even so, it’s kind of a miracle he survived.”
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
"I later went on to have two children, which he told me were both miracles," she said.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
"It's like layer upon layer of layer of miracles" that they found two men on Friday, he said, given that the multiple challenges they faced.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
Mine is a God of miracles, and he constantly surprises me.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
They had come to witness more of Messi’s miracles, not his World Cup swan song.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
But while miracles are impossible, they aren’t coincidences.
From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri
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.
