vesper
Americannoun
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(initial capital letter) the evening star, especially Venus; Hesperus.
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Also called vesper bell. a bell rung at evening.
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(sometimes initial capital letter) vespers,
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a religious service in the late afternoon or the evening.
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the sixth of the seven canonical hours, or the service for it, occurring in the late afternoon or the evening.
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Roman Catholic Church. a part of the office to be said in the evening by those in major orders, frequently made a public ceremony in the afternoons or evenings of Sundays and holy days.
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Anglican Church. evensong.
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Archaic. evening.
adjective
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of, pertaining to, appearing in, or proper to the evening.
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of or relating to vespers.
noun
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an evening prayer, service, or hymn
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an archaic word for evening
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(modifier) of or relating to vespers
noun
Etymology
Origin of vesper
1350–1400; Middle English, partly < Latin: evening, evening star; partly < Old French vespres evening service < Medieval Latin vesperās, accusative plural of Latin vespera, feminine variant of vesper; cognate with Greek hésperos; akin to west
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.
Moore was known on campus as a powerful speaker, tasked as first captain with addressing the student body during weekday vespers in the cavernous chapel with its stained-glass windows depicting historical military scenes.
From Washington Post
In the afternoon, he presides at a vespers service in the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Quebec City.
From Reuters
Presiding would have required standing, kneeling and holding aloft a monstrance, a heavy gold vessel used to hold the communion host during vespers.
From Reuters
It was my vespers, my evening prayer, my way of honoring creation and the sacred.
From Washington Post
The spring birder may see trumpeter swans, secretive vesper sparrows, indigo buntings and blue-winged warblers.
From New York Times
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.
