worship

See also: Worship

English

Wikipedia

Etymology

From Middle English worschippe, worthschipe, from Old English weorþscipe, corresponding to worth (“worthy, honorable”) +‎ -ship. Cognate with Scots worschip (“worship”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈwəːʃɪp/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈwɝʃɪp/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

worship (usually uncountable, plural worships)

1. (obsolete) The condition of being worthy; honour, distinction.
   • 1485, Thomas Malory, Le Morte Darthur, Book I, chapter xxiij:

     I will be on horsbak said the knyght / thenne was Arthur wrothe and dressid his sheld toward hym with his swerd drawen / whan the knyght sawe that / he a lyghte / for hym thought no worship to haue a knyght at suche auaille he to be on horsbak and he on foot and so he alyght & dressid his sheld vnto Arthur

   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, III.3:

     Then he forth on his journey did proceede, / To seeke adventures which mote him befall, / And win him worship through his warlike deed […].

2. The devotion accorded to a deity or to a sacred object.
3. The religious ceremonies that express this devotion.
   • John Tillotson (1630-1694)

     The worship of God is an eminent part of religion, and prayer is a chief part of religious worship.

4. (by extension) The ardent love of a something.
5. An object of worship.
   • Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)

     In attitude and aspect formed to be / At once the artist's worship and despair.

6. Honour; respect; civil deference.
   • Edmund Spenser (c.1552–1599)

     of which great worth and worship may be won

   • Bible, Luke xiv. 10

     Then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee.

Derived terms

Terms derived from worship

freedom of worship Her Worship His Worship house of worship place of worship Worship

worshipability worshipable worshipful Worshipful Master worshipfully worshipfulness

worshipped worshipping worshippingly worshipworthy Your Worship

Synonyms

• adoration
• reverence
• idolatry

Translations

devotion accorded to a deity or to a sacred object

• Armenian: պաշտօն (paštōn)

  Old Armenian: պաշտամունք (paštamunkʿ)

• Catalan: adoració f, culte m, veneració f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 崇拜 (zh) (chóngbài), 禮拜 (zh), 礼拜 (zh) (lǐbài), 敬拜 (zh) (jìngbaì)

• Czech: uctívání n
• Finnish: palvonta
• French: culte (fr) m, adoration (fr), vénération (fr)
• Georgian: თაყვანისცემა (t’aqvanisc’ema)
• German: Verehrung f, Anbetung (de) f
• Greek: λατρεία (el) f (latreía)
• Hebrew: סגידה (he) f (sgidá)
• Italian: adorazione (it) f, venerazione f, culto (it) m

• Japanese: 礼拝 (れいはい, reihai)
• Kurdish:

  Kurmanji: peristin (ku) f

  Sorani: پەرستن (peristin)

• Portuguese: adoração (pt) f, cultuação f, culto m
• Russian: поклоне́ние (ru) n (poklonénije), почита́ние (ru) n (počitánije), боготворе́ние n (bogotvorénije), благогове́ние (ru) n (blagogovénije)
• Scottish Gaelic: adhradh m
• Spanish: adoración (es) f
• Swahili: abudu (sw)
• Swedish: dyrkan (sv)
• Turkish: ibadet (tr), tapınma (tr)
• Urdu: پوجا f (pūjā), عبادت f ('ibādat), پرستش f (parastiś)

the religious ceremonies that express this devotion

• Catalan: culte m
• Czech: bohoslužba (cs) f
• Finnish: jumalanpalvelus, palvontamenot pl
• French: culte (fr) m
• German: Gottesdienst (de) m, Verehrung f, Anbetung (de) f
• Greek: λατρεία (el) f (latreía)
• Hebrew: עבודת האל (he) f (avodát haél), עבודה (he) f (avodá)

• Italian: culto (it) m
• Portuguese: culto (pt) m
• Russian: богослуже́ние (ru) n (bogoslužénije)
• Scottish Gaelic: adhradh m
• Swahili: abudu (sw)
• Swedish: tillbedjan c
• Turkish: ibadet (tr), tapınma (tr)
• Urdu: پوجا f (pūjā)

the ardent love of a person

• Catalan: adoració f
• Finnish: palvonta
• French: culte (fr) m
• German: Verehrung f, Anbetung (de) f
• Greek: λατρεία (el) f (latreía)
• Hebrew: הערצה (he) f (haaratsá)
• Italian: culto (it) m, venerazione f, adorazione (it) f, ardore m

• Portuguese: adoração (pt) f
• Russian: обожа́ние (ru) n (obožánije), почита́ние (ru) n (počitánije), боготворе́ние n (bogotvorénije)
• Swahili: abudu (sw)
• Swedish: dyrkan (sv) c
• Turkish: tapma (tr)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• Arabic: ^{(please verify)} عِبَادَة f (`ibaadah)
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} culto (it) m
• Korean: ^{(please verify)} 우러르다 (ureoreuda), ^{(please verify)} 숭배하다 (ko) (sungbaehada)
• Kurdish: ^{(please verify)} perestîş (ku) f
• Slovak: ^{(please verify)} uctievanie n
• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} culto (es) m, ^{(please verify)} alabanza (es) f
• Turkish: ^{(please verify)} ibadet (tr), ^{(please verify)} tapınma (tr)

Verb

worship (third-person singular simple present worships, present participle (UK) worshipping or (US) worshiping, simple past and past participle (UK) worshipped or (US) worshiped)

1. (transitive) To reverence (a deity, etc.) with supreme respect and veneration; to perform religious exercises in honour of.
   • Shakespeare

     God is to be worshipped.

   • Milton

     When all our fathers worshipped stocks and stones.

2. (transitive) To honour with extravagant love and extreme submission, as a lover; to adore; to idolize.
   • Carew

     With bended knees I daily worship her.

3. (intransitive) To participate in religious ceremonies.

   We worship at the church down the road.

Translations

to honor and adore, especially as a deity

• Arabic: عبد (ar) (ʿabada)
• Bengali: পূজা করা
• Catalan: adorar (ca), venerar (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 崇拜 (zh) (chóngbài), 禮拜 (zh), 礼拜 (zh) (lǐbài), 敬拜 (zh) (jìngbaì), 崇奉 (zh) (chóngfèng)

• Czech: uctívat
• Dutch: vereren (nl)
• Finnish: palvoa (fi)
• French: vénérer (fr), adorer (fr)
• German: verehren (de), anbeten (de)
• Hebrew: סגד (he) (sagád)
• Hungarian: imád (hu)
• Italian: adorare (it), venerare, deificare
• Japanese: 崇拝する (ja) (すうはいする, sūhai surú)

• Kurdish:

  Kurmanji: peristin (ku)

  Sorani: پەرستن (peristin)

• Maore Comorian: uãɓudu (uãbudu)
• Polish: czcić (pl)
• Portuguese: adorar (pt), venerar (pt), cultuar
• Romanian: închina (ro)
• Russian: поклоня́ться (ru) impf (poklonjátʹsja) (+ dative case), почита́ть (ru) impf (počitátʹ), боготвори́ть (ru) impf (bogotvorítʹ), благогове́ть (ru) impf (blagogovétʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: славити, обожавати

  Roman: slaviti (sh), obožavati (sh)

• Swedish: dyrka (sv), tillbe (sv)
• Turkish: tapmak (tr)
• Uzbek: topinmoq

to participate in religious ceremonies

• Hebrew: עבד לאל (he) (avád laél), עבד ל... (he) (avád l...)
• Italian: celebrare (it)

• Scottish Gaelic: dèan adhradh
• Swahili: abudu (sw)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} aanbidden (nl)
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} adorare (it)
• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} adorar (es), ^{(please verify)} venerar, ^{(please verify)} alabar (es)
• Turkish: ^{(please verify)} ibadet etmek, tapınmak