holy

adjective

ho·​ly ˈhō-lē 

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)

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 oath

holy smoke

holily

ˈhō-lə-lē 

adverb

Synonyms of holy

• pious
• religious
• devout
• reverent
• spiritual

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

This campaign season contains all sorts of scenarios screaming for holy intervention. — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026

The holiday is a holy time for Jews, and is believed to be the birthday of the universe or the day God created Adam and Eve. — Miami Herald, 9 Sep. 2026

The Ranch is situated nine miles away from Aspen in a kind of holy trinity with the local fire station and the local chapel, each side of the triangle about the length of a football field. — Sarah Douglas, ARTnews.com, 4 Sep. 2026

Once upon a time, Herzog was the crazy visionary, determined at all costs to realize his aesthetic ambitions to feel more, to see deeper, to explore the madness of the world, a bit of a holy fool himself. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 3 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English hālig; akin to Old English hāl whole — more at whole

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing holy

• give (someone) holy hell
• holy city
• holy cow
• holy day
• holy day of obligation
• holy grail
• holy mackerel
• holy matrimony
• holy moly
• holy of holies
• holy oil
• holy order
• holy smoke
• holy terror
• holy trinity
• holy war
• holy water
• holy writ
• the bonds of holy matrimony
• the holy of holies

Rhymes for holy

• coaly
• coli
• foley
• folie
• goalie
• lowly
• moly
• slowly
• tolly
• wholly
• acholi
• emboli

Kids Definition

holy

adjective

ho·​ly ˈhō-lē 

holier; holiest

1

: worthy of complete devotion and trust

2

: divine

3

: set apart to the service of God or a god : sacred

4

: respected as sacred

5

: complete, utter

he is a holy terror

—used in combination as a mild oath

holy cow