celebrate
UK /ˈsɛl.ɪ.bɹeɪt/ · US /ˈsɛl.ə.bɹeɪt/ verb
Forms celebrates celebrating celebrated celebratest celebratedst celebrateth
- verb (transitive) To extol or honour in a solemn manner. “to celebrate the name of the Most High”
- verb (transitive) To honour by rites, by ceremonies of joy and respect, or by refraining from ordinary business; to observe duly. “to celebrate a birthday”
- verb (transitive or intransitive) To engage in joyful activity in appreciation of an event. “I was promoted today at work—let’s celebrate!”
- verb (transitive) To perform or participate in, as a sacrament or solemn rite; to perform with appropriate rites. “to celebrate a marriage”
Synonyms
Etymology
From Middle English celebraten, from celebrat(e) (“celebrated”, also used as the past participle of celebraten) + -en, borrowed from Latin celebrātus, perfect passive participle of celebrō (“frequent, go to in great numbers, celebrate, honor, praise”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from celeber (“frequented, populous”). Displaced native Old English fæġnian and frēolsian.
Webster’s 1913
- verb To extol or honor in a solemn manner; as, to celebrate the name of the Most High.
- verb To honor by solemn rites, by ceremonies of joy and respect, or by refraining from ordinary business; to observe duly; to keep; as, to celebrate a birthday.
Etymology [L. celebratus, p. p. of celebrare to frequent, to celebrate, fr. celeber famous.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “celebrate”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details