Definition of “holy” - English Dictionary

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“holy” in English

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holyadjective

uk ​ /ˈhəʊ.li/ us ​ /ˈhoʊ.li/

holy adjective (FOR EMPHASIS)

holy cow/mackerel/smoke! also offensive holy shit mainly US informal

› used to show that you think something is surprising, shocking, or impressive:

Holy cow! How did you get that black eye?

(Definition of “holy” from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

“holy” in American English

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holyadjective

us ​ /ˈhoʊ·li/

holy adjective (GOOD)

› considered to be pure or good because of being related to what a religion values:

holy scriptures
Jerusalem is a holy city to Christians, Muslims, and Jews.

holy adjective (EMPHASIS)

› infml used to emphasize another word, and sometimes to avoid swearing:

My nephew is a holy terror (= a child who behaves very badly).

Idiom(s)

holy cow

(Definition of “holy” from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

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