English Online Dictionary. What means saint? What does saint mean?
English
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /seɪnt/
- Rhymes: -eɪnt
- (UK, as an unstressed, capitalised title) IPA(key): /sən(t)/, /sɨn(t)/
Etymology 1
From Middle English saint, seint, sainct, seinct, sanct, senct, partly from Old English sanct (“saint”) and confluence with Old French saint, seinte (Modern French saint); both from Latin sanctus (“holy, consecrated”, in Late Latin as a noun, “a saint”), past participle of sancire (“to render sacred, make holy”), akin to sacer (“holy, sacred”). Displaced native Middle English halwe (“saint”) from Old English hālga (“saint, holy one”) (> Modern English hallow (“saint”)).
Noun
saint (plural saints)
- A person whom a church or another religious group has officially recognised as especially holy or godly; one eminent for piety and virtue.
- Kateri Tekakwitha was proclaimed a saint.
- (figuratively, by extension) A person with positive qualities; one who does good.
- Dorothy Day was a living saint.
- Thanks for looking after the house while I'm away. You're a saint!
- One of the blessed in heaven.
- (archaic) A holy object.
Synonyms
- (holy person): hallow (obsolete)
Derived terms
Translations
See also
- hallow
- holos
- holy
Etymology 2
From Middle English saynten, seinten, sonten, partly from Anglo-Norman saintir and partly from the noun Middle English seint, seynt (see above).
Verb
saint (third-person singular simple present saints, present participle sainting, simple past and past participle sainted)
- (transitive) To canonize, to formally recognize someone as a saint.
- Many wish to see Pope John Paul II sainted immediately.
Translations
Etymology 3
From the pattern of naming various places for Saints from religion.
Prefix
saint
- (toponymy) A prefix attached to another term, used to create placenames. The resultant placename need not be associated with any religious saint character.
Further reading
- “saint”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “saint”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
Anagrams
- Astin, Insta, Santi, Sinta, Tanis, Tians, antis, insta-, sat in, satin, stain, stian, tians, tisan
French
Etymology
From Latin sanctus (“holy”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /sɛ̃/, (in liaison) /sɛ̃.t‿/
- Rhymes: -ɛ̃
- Homophones: sain, sains, saints, sein, seing, seings, seins, ceins, ceint, ceints
Noun
saint m (plural saints, feminine sainte)
- a male saint; masculine of sainte
Adjective
saint (feminine sainte, masculine plural saints, feminine plural saintes)
- saintly (all meanings)
Derived terms
- in Belgian toponyms:
- in Canadian toponyms:
- In French toponyms:
- In toponyms of French Guiana:
- In Guadeloupean toponyms:
- In Italian toponyms:
- In toponyms of Martinique:
- In toponyms of Réunion:
- In Swiss toponyms:
Further reading
- “saint”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Anagrams
- tians
Irish
Etymology
From Old Irish sant, of unknown origin. DIL connects it with Welsh chwant (“desire”), but the Old Irish cognate of that word is actually sét (“treasure”). The ant sequence suggests a late loanword into Goidelic.
Pronunciation
- (Ulster) IPA(key): /sˠɪn̠ʲtʲ/
Noun
saint f (genitive singular sainte)
- greed, avarice, covetousness
- great eagerness, desire
Declension
Synonyms
- cíocras, gabhálacht (“avarice”)
Mutation
References
Further reading
- G. Toner, M. Ní Mhaonaigh, S. Arbuthnot, D. Wodtko, M.-L. Theuerkauf, editors (2019), “sant”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
- Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977), “saint”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
Norman
Etymology
From Old French saint, from Latin sanctus (“holy”).
Pronunciation
Adjective
saint m
- (Jersey) holy
Noun
saint m (plural saints)
- (Jersey, religion) saint
Old French
Alternative forms
- sanct (rare)
- saent (rare)
- seint (common, chiefly Anglo-Norman)
Etymology
Latin sanctus
Noun
saint m (oblique plural sainz or saintz, nominative singular sainz or saintz, nominative plural saint)
- saint
Declension
Adjective
saint m (oblique and nominative feminine singular sainte)
- holy
- pious; devout
Descendants
- → English: saint
- French: saint
- Norman: saint (Jersey)
Welsh
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /sai̯nt/
Noun
saint m pl (not mutable)
- plural of sant