Yom Kippur

noun

Yom Kip·​pur ˌyōm-ki-ˈpu̇r 

ˌyȯm-,

ˌyäm- 

-ˈki-pər,

-(ˌ)pu̇r

: a Jewish holiday observed with fasting and prayer on the 10th day of Tishri in accordance with the rites described in Leviticus 16

called also Day of Atonement

Examples of Yom Kippur in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Friday night, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish year, a Hezbollah drone struck a building in Herzliya, in central Israel, but air raid sirens had alerted people to seek shelter and there were no injuries. —Dina Kraft, The Christian Science Monitor, 16 Oct. 2024

Canada's Global News reported a Jewish school for girls was shot at for a second time in a year on the eve of Yom Kippur on Friday in Toronto. —Benjamin Weinthal, Fox News, 16 Oct. 2024

On Saturday, during the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, one hit a suburb of Tel Aviv, causing damage but no injuries. —Wafaa Shurafa and Samy Magdy, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2024

The incident occurred around 4 a.m. Saturday at the Bais Chaya Mushka Girls Elementary School on Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement and the holiest day of the year in Judaism, Toronto Police Service Inspector Paul Krawczyk said at a news conference. —Emma Tucker, CNN, 12 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Hebrew yōm kippūr, literally, day of atonement

First Known Use

1735, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

Yom Kippur

noun

Yom Kip·​pur ˌyōm-ki-ˈpu̇r  ˌyȯm- 

ˌyäm-,

-ˈkip-ər

: a Jewish holiday observed in September or October with fasting and prayer as ways of making up for sins