bless

bless
\ \ [OE] Bless occurs in no other language than English, and originally meant ‘mark with blood’, from some sort of religious rite in which such marking conferred sanctity. It probably goes back to a prehistoric Germanic formation *blōthisōjan, a derivative of *blōtham ‘blood’, which was taken up by no Germanic language other than Old English. Here it produced blētsian, which by the 13th century had become blesse. The word’s connotations of ‘happiness’ and ‘well-being’, which go back at least to the year 1000, were probably influenced by the etymologically unrelated bliss.
\ \ Cf.⇒ BLOOD

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Bless — Bless, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Blessed}or {Blest}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Blessing}.] [OE. blessien, bletsen, AS. bletsian, bledsian, bloedsian, fr. bl?d blood; prob. originally to consecrate by sprinkling with blood. See {Blood}.] 1. To make or pronounce …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Bless me — Bless Bless, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Blessed}or {Blest}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Blessing}.] [OE. blessien, bletsen, AS. bletsian, bledsian, bloedsian, fr. bl?d blood; prob. originally to consecrate by sprinkling with blood. See {Blood}.] 1. To make or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Bless us — Bless Bless, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Blessed}or {Blest}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Blessing}.] [OE. blessien, bletsen, AS. bletsian, bledsian, bloedsian, fr. bl?d blood; prob. originally to consecrate by sprinkling with blood. See {Blood}.] 1. To make or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • bless — [ bles ] (past tense and past participle blessed or blest [ blest ] ) verb transitive * 1. ) to say a prayer asking God to help and protect someone or something: a ceremony to bless the harvest a ) if God blesses someone or something, he helps… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • bless — S3 [bles] v [T] [: Old English; Origin: bletsian, from blod blood ; because blood was used in religious ceremonies] 1.) bless you! spoken a) what you say when someone ↑sneezes b) used to thank someone for doing something for you 2.) …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • bless — bless·ed; bless·ed·ly; bless·ed·ness; bless·ing·ly; bless; un·bless·ed·ness; …   English syllables

  • bless — [bles] vt. blessed or blest, blessing [ME blessen, bletsien < OE bletsian, bledsian < blod,BLOOD: rite of consecration by sprinkling an altar with blood] 1. to make or declare holy by a spoken formula or a sign; hallow; consecrate 2. to ask …   English World dictionary

  • Bless — ist der Familienname folgender Personen Astrid Bless (1944–2009), deutsche Synchronsprecherin und Schauspielerin Roland Bless (* 1961), deutscher Musiker Siehe auch: Bläss Diese Seite ist ein …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • bless — ► VERB 1) call on God to protect or treat favourably. 2) consecrate by a religious rite. 3) praise (God). 4) (be blessed with) be endowed with or granted (something greatly desired). ● bless you! Cf. ↑bless you! …   English terms dictionary

  • bless me! — or bless my soul! (old) An exclamation of surprise • • • Main Entry: ↑bless …   Useful english dictionary

  • bless me — bless my soul/bless me/well I’m blessed/old fashioned phrase used for showing surprise Thesaurus: old fashioned expressions of surprisesynonym Main entry: bless …   Useful english dictionary

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