First recorded in 1890–95; from Ashkenazi pronunciation of Hebrew shibhʿāh “seven”
From Sanskrit: literally, “the auspicious”
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“I wasn’t able to grieve. When Tamir returns I will sit shiva with all of the respect he deserves.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2025
In the Jewish tradition, after someone dies, you sit shiva for a week.
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2025
You know, I talk about coming through the front door for that first time by myself after the shiva and how awful it was — a silence, the likes of which I never experienced before.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2024
All are brought together, at the deceased patriarch’s request, to sit shiva for a backbreaking seven days.
From New York Times ● Feb. 29, 2024
Saying kaddish and sitting shiva, that absolves them of any responsibility for you.
From "The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother" by James McBride
In an 1803 etching and aquatint with watercolor by Thomas Daniell, we see Gangaram absorbed in sketching wall reliefs of Shiva and Parvati from a rock-cut cave at Ellora.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026
"This has been a long-standing issue and we have been investigating. Six have been arrested and our investigations will continue," Shiva Kumar Shrestha, the bureau's spokesman, told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jan. 26, 2026
At its heart was a 12ft tall emblem of the Hindu god Shiva, sheathed in gold encrusted with rubies and pearls.
From BBC ● Jan. 17, 2025
Rix says: "Shakti and Shiva might be the first two additions to the 'poor old heart' of our Milky Way, initiating its growth towards a large galaxy."
From Science Daily ● Mar. 21, 2024
Shiva was my buddy, but he sounded funny: He spoke Kirundi, a language of Burundi, and I would often ask him to repeat things.
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.
