holy

The word “holy” means regarded as sacred or dedicated to a god or religious purpose. In plain terms, sacred, connected to God or religion — or, in casual speech, just a way to express surprise ("holy smokes!").

“Holy” is pronounced HOH-lee (/ˈhoʊli/ in IPA).

Here is “holy” used in a sentence: “Pilgrims travel long distances to visit the holy city.”

Words with a similar meaning to “holy” include blessed, celestial, devoutful, divine, hallowed and heavenly.

The opposite of “holy” — its antonyms — are profane, secular, unhallowed, unholy and worldly.

Depending on how it is used, “holy” can be an adjective and an intj.

The word “holy” comes from Old English. From Old English hālig, related to hāl ("whole, healthy") — the same root that gives us the word "whole.".

“Holy” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B1 level.

The two overlap heavily. 'Sacred' describes something set apart for religious use or treated with deep respect — a sacred text, a sacred site. 'Holy' carries a stronger sense of divine purity or closeness to God, and applies to beings as well as things, as in 'a holy person.' Sacred is also used more loosely for anything greatly cherished.

The most direct opposites are 'unholy' and 'profane,' both suggesting a lack of sanctity or active disrespect toward the sacred. 'Secular' is the neutral opposite, meaning simply worldly or non-religious rather than evil. Which one fits depends on your meaning: 'profane' implies irreverence, while 'secular' just marks the absence of a religious quality.

Primarily, yes — its core meaning ties something to God or to religious devotion. But it also appears in everyday and figurative speech, from exclamations like 'holy cow' to treating a rule as 'holy,' meaning absolutely not to be broken. In those uses it borrows the weight and seriousness of the religious sense.