hallowed
adjective
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Hallowed Has Old English Roots
The adjective hallowed, meaning "holy" or "revered," isn’t especially spooky, but its history is entwined with that of a certain spooky season. Hallowed is the past participle of the verb hallow, a term that descends from the Middle English word halowen. That word can be traced back to the Old English adjective hālig, meaning "holy." During the Middle Ages, All Hallows' Day was the name for what Christians now call All Saints' Day (hallow was once used also as a noun referring to a saint), and the evening that preceded All Hallows' Day was All Hallows' Eve or All Hallow Even—or, as we know it today, Halloween. (Although pumpkins are often hollowed out on Halloween, hollow has a different Old English root.)
Examples of hallowed in a Sentence
Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 26 May 2026
The hallowed ground of Arlington National Cemetery is always a poignant place to visit.
—Mike Snider, USA Today, 23 May 2026
The battleship, now a military cemetery reachable only by boat, has stood as one of the nation’s most hallowed sites since Japan bombed and sank it in 1941.
—Jim Mustian, Los Angeles Times, 14 May 2026
Last year, Yale ran into some hot pitching and watched Columbia win the tournament and celebrate on its hallowed field.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 13 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for hallowed
Cite this Entry
“Hallowed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hallowed. Accessed 28 May. 2026.
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