miracle
Americannoun
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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:
Why you should be skeptical of the latest miracle drug.
From Slate ● Jul. 30, 2026
At this rainforest-like indoor farm, where creatures such as coral, tropical fish and sea cucumbers inhabit different aquariums, Kinjo bred "miracle coral" with extra resistance to warmer water.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
Watch the export miracle turn into a pumpkin or improvise.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
It was like "witnessing something that is literally out of a movie", said Johnson, adding it was a miracle he was unscathed except for "some really nasty tinnitus".
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
We stared at the nests reflecting the sun, each one a little miracle.
From "Willodeen" by Katherine Applegate
In this Jubilee Year of St. Francis, curatorial miracles, it seems, are possible.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 11, 2026
AFP journalists saw devotees deliberately puncturing their skin with glass shards attached to a small wooden paddle to ensure their bleeding during the ritual, a way to atone for sins and seek miracles from God.
From Barron's ● Apr. 3, 2026
Never mind the miracles — according to Scripture, Sarah lived to 127 years old, while Abraham was kicking up dust until he was 175.
From Salon ● Mar. 29, 2026
Then, sufficiently disturbed, he hauls in the AI cheerleaders, a suspiciously positive gang who can envision only medical miracles and grindless lives in which we’re all full-time artists.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2026
She believed that a lot of miracles happened in that home to keep us alive.
From "How Dare the Sun Rise" by Sandra Uwiringiyimana
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.
