Palm Sunday

Save This Word!

noun

the Sunday before Easter, celebrated in commemoration of Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem.

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON "IS" VS. "ARE"

"Is" it time for a new quiz? "Are" you ready? Then prove your excellent skills on using "is" vs. "are."

Question 1 of 7

IS and ARE are both forms of which verb?

have

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of Palm Sunday

before 1000; Middle English; Old English

Words nearby Palm Sunday

palm oil, palm-oil chop, palmoplantar keratoderma, Palm Springs, palm sugar, Palm Sunday, palmtop, palmtop computer, palmus, palm vaulting, palm warbler

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

MORE ABOUT PALM SUNDAY

What is Palm Sunday?

Palm Sunday is the day on which Christians commemorate Jesus’s entry into Jerusalem five days before his crucifixion and death.

It is the Sunday before Easter, the holiday on which Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus.

Palm Sunday is the first day of Holy Week, which is the week before Easter and ends on Holy Saturday.

When is Palm Sunday?

In 2022, Palm Sunday falls on April 10. In 2023, Palm Sunday 2023 falls on April 2.

Palm Sunday is always the Sunday before Easter, but Easter moves every year.

In Western Christianity, the date of Palm Sunday can fall between March 15 and April 18.

In the Orthodox Church, the date of Easter is calculated in a different way.

In 2022, the Orthodox Church will observe Palm Sunday on April 17. In 2023, the Orthodox Church will observe Palm Sunday on April 9.

Why is it called Palm Sunday?

The first records of the term Palm Sunday come from before 1000. It’s called Palm Sunday in reference to the palm leaves that the people of Jerusalem are said to have laid in the path of the donkey that Jesus was riding to welcome him.

In some churches, palm branches are distributed to the congregation to be waved, displayed, or carried in processions. These palms are sometimes saved until the next year, when they are burned so the ashes can be used in ceremonies on Ash Wednesday.

Palm Sunday is often observed in a celebratory way in remembrance of Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, with the rest of Holy Week turning to somber reflection as Good Friday approaches. Easter Sunday is treated as a time of celebration and is considered the most important Christian holiday.

What are some terms that often get used in discussing Palm Sunday?

How is Palm Sunday discussed in real life?

In contrast to the somber reflection and fasting that marks the season of Lent and the rest of Holy Week, Christians often observe Palm Sunday in a celebratory way.

Palm Sunday service on March 25, 2018, at Kansas Avenue United Methodist Church, 1029 N Kansas Ave. Looking for a place to celebrate Easter on Sunday, April 1, 2018? Comecheck us out. pic.twitter.com/A7d2Upx0wB

— Kansas Avenue United Methodist Church (@KansasMethodist) March 31, 2018

Palm Sunday! We are waving palms & having a parade at the beginning of worship for children young & old! Join us 11am #burien #church #faith

— Burien Comm. Church (@BurienCC) April 11, 2014

Church on Palm Sunday is always so beautiful

— leslie loves allyᴬᴮᴴ 💗 (@allybslayinlife) March 25, 2018

Try using Palm Sunday!

True or False?

Palm Sunday is always observed on the Sunday before Easter.

How to use Palm Sunday in a sentence

Congress is nearing a vote on the Keystone XL pipeline, and lawmakers made their cases for—and against—it Sunday.
Fact-Checking the Sunday Shows: Jan. 4|PunditFact.com|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
That was accomplished by cops such as the one whose picture was clutched so tightly by his widow on Sunday.
Funeral Protest Is Too Much for NYPD Union Boss|Michael Daly|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Scott, who died Sunday at 49, could go from evoking a Baptist preacher to quoting Public Enemy.
Remembering ESPN’s Sly, Cocky, and Cool Anchor Stuart Scott|Stereo Williams|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
When ‘Downton Abbey’ returns Sunday night, its fashion fans are in for a familiar treat.
What Downton’s Fashion Really Means|Katie Baker|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Those who are not working on Sunday will almost certainly attend the funeral for Liu.
Cop Families Boo De Blasio at NYPD Graduation|Michael Daly|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Tobacco at this period was also rolled up in the leaves of the Palm and smoked.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
A little boy aged two years and four months was deprived of a pencil from Thursday to Sunday for scribbling on the wall-paper.
Children's Ways|James Sully
And sure enough when Sunday came, and the pencil was restored to him, he promptly showed nurse his picture.
Children's Ways|James Sully
The fact that the day following the punishment parade was a Sunday brought about a certain relaxation from discipline.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
Hagley Road, on Sunday evenings, is particularly affected by some as their favourite promenade.
Showell's Dictionary of Birmingham|Thomas T. Harman and Walter Showell

British Dictionary definitions for Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday

noun

the Sunday before Easter commemorating Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem

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

Cultural definitions for Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday

The Sunday before Easter. It is celebrated by Christians (see also Christian) to commemorate the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem (see also Jerusalem) five days before his Crucifixion. On that occasion, the people of Jerusalem laid palm leaves in his path as a sign of welcome. Palms are carried or worn by worshipers in many churches on Palm Sunday.