holier; holiest
1
: exalted or worthy of complete devotion as one perfect in goodness and righteousness
2
: divine
… for the Lord our God is holy.—
Psalms 99:9 (King James Version)
Psalms 99:9 (King James Version)3
: devoted entirely to the deity or the work of the deity
a holy temple
holy prophets
4
a
: having a divine quality
holy love
b
: venerated as or as if sacred
holy scripture
a holy relic
5
—used as an intensive
this is a holy mess
he was a holy terror when he drank—Thomas Wolfe
—often used in combination as a mild oathThomas Wolfeholy smoke
Examples of holy in a Sentence
a holy relic worn by one of the saints
the holy monk spent many hours on his knees in prayer
Recent Examples on the Web
The Temple Mount movement — a loose coalition of Israeli religious and nationalist organizations — harbors a potentially explosive mix of prophecy and politics that aims to upend some 1,300 years of Muslim control over the third-holiest site in Islam and the holiest one for Jews.
—
Gabe Joselow,
NBC news,
26 June 2026
For example, the Life of Saint Æthelwold is a tenth-century biography that narrates the holy life of an English bishop.
—
Literary Hub,
25 June 2026
This is a group with its own attitudes and music and holy texts and dark-academic styles of dressing.
—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
25 June 2026
The backstory Born holy to an order of Franciscan nuns, this 15th-century building settled into private hands before its 1993 reincarnation as Four Seasons’ first continental European outpost.
—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
24 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for holy
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Gabe Joselow,
NBC news,
26 June 2026
For example, the Life of Saint Æthelwold is a tenth-century biography that narrates the holy life of an English bishop.
—
Literary Hub,
25 June 2026
This is a group with its own attitudes and music and holy texts and dark-academic styles of dressing.
—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
25 June 2026
The backstory Born holy to an order of Franciscan nuns, this 15th-century building settled into private hands before its 1993 reincarnation as Four Seasons’ first continental European outpost.
—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
24 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for holy
Cite this Entry
“Holy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/holy. Accessed 2 Jul. 2026.
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