celestial en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- /səˈlɛs.ti.əl/ (General-American)
- /səˈlɛs.t͡ʃ(ə)l/ (General-American)
- (General-American) audio
- /sɪˈlɛs.ti.əl/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- /sɪˈlɛs.t͡ʃəl/ (Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *kéh₂i-lom Proto-Italic *kailom? Latin caelum Latin terrestris Latin -estris Latin caelestis Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Indo-European *-is Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis Medieval Latin caelestiālislbor. Old French celestialbor. Middle English celestial English celestial The adjective is derived from Late Middle English celestial (“relating to the heavens or sky; (Christianity) relating to heaven, divine, heavenly”), borrowed from Old French celestial (modern French céleste), from Medieval Latin caelestiālis (“celestial”), or directly from its etymon Latin caelestis (“of or in the heavens, heavenly; (figurative) of the gods, divine; etc.”), from caelum (“heaven; sky”) (ultimate etymology uncertain, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *kéh₂ilom (“whole”)) + -estris (suffix meaning ‘dwelling or located in’ forming adjectives from nouns). The adverb and noun are derived from the adjective. Adjective sense 2.2 (“of or relating to China”) and noun sense 3 (“native of China”) refer to Celestial Empire (a calque of Mandarin 天朝 (Tiāncháo, “(literary) the Chinese Empire, China”), from 天 (tiān, “heaven; sky”) + 朝 (cháo, “dynasty; emperor’s reign; imperial court; etc.”)), a dated name for China when it was subject to imperial rule.
Meanings
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(not-comparable, usually) Of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space, where the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars are visible.
[W]e muſt of neceſſitie vſe the benefit of yeares, daies, hovvers, minutes, vvhich all grovve from cœleſtiall motion.
1597, Richard Hooker, “Of Festivall Daies and the Natural Causes of Their Conuenient Institution”, in J[ohn] S[penser], editor, Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie, […], London: […] Iohn Windet, […], →OCLC, book V, section 69, page 191:[T]he pictures of the cæleſtial globe vvere deſigned memoriæ cauſâ [for memory's sake], by the ſouthern Scythians, vvho dvvelt in Chaldæa, Armenia, &c.— […] [W]e mean to prove, that the ſouthern Scythians, from vvhom the Iriſh and primitive inhabitants of Britain are deſcended, vvere the authors or inventors of thoſe extraordinary figures on the cæleſtial charts, vvhich they drevv or painted as repreſentations of the things expreſſed by the vvord formed of the aſtronomical characters.
1790, Charles Vallancey, “Of the Use and Application of the Cælestial Alphabet as an Astronomical Character; and of the Origin of the Figures on the Cælestial Globe”, in Collectanea de Rebus Hibernicis. […] [Collection of Irish Matters], volume V, Dublin: […] R. Marchbank, […], →OCLC, pages 191–192:[G]oe vvith ſpeede / To ſome forlorne and naked Hermytage, / Remote from all the pleaſurs of the vvorld: / There ſtay vntill the tvvelue Celeſtiall Signes / Haue brought about the annuall reckoning.
c. 1595–1596 (date written), W. Shakespere [i.e., William Shakespeare], A Pleasant Conceited Comedie Called, Loues Labors Lost. […] (First Quarto), London: […] W[illiam] W[hite] for Cut[h]bert Burby, published 1598, →OCLC, [Act V, scene ii], signature I4, verso:He [Ebenezer Scrooge] then conveyed him and his sister into the veriest old well of a shivering best-parlour that ever was seen, where the maps upon the wall, and the celestial and terrestrial globes in the windows, were waxy with cold.
1843 December 19, Charles Dickens, “Stave Two. The First of the Three Spirits.”, in A Christmas Carol. […], London: Chapman & Hall, […], →OCLC, page 55:
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(archaic, humorous, not-comparable, usually) Of a nose: upturned, as if towards the sky.
A Celestial Nose in a woman is very frequently an index of wit. […] A Celestial-nosed woman is only more witty than a similarly gifted man, because the impudence which it invariably indicates is backed by woman's ever-ready tact and quickness.
1848, Eden Warwick [pseudonym; George Jabet], “Of Feminine Noses”, in Nasology: Or, Hints towards a Classification of Noses, London: Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 203:
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(archaic, humorous, not-comparable, often, usually) Of or relating to China; Chinese.
[H]e possessed the most delightful chinoiseries—trophies of his sojourn in the Celestial Empire: […]
1878 July–October, Henry James, Jr., chapter VI, in The Europeans. A Sketch. […], volume I, London: Macmillan and Co., published 1878, →OCLC, page 246:It is no wonder that loose, portable locks, like those used to secure baggage of all kinds in transit, should become well known and distributed, especially along the ancient lines of trade. But as this style of padlock is found to be the almost universal one now in China, one is tempted to ask who was the first and true inventor, Roman or Celestial?
1893 April 12 (date delivered), Harry W[ithers] Chubb, “The Construction of Locks and Safes”, in Journal of the Society of Arts, volume XLI, number 2,108, London: […] [F]or the [Royal] Society [of Arts] by George Bell and Sons, […], published 14 April 1893, →OCLC, page 512, column 2:If there is a man in the Celestial Empire, who will lay his hand upon his breast, and declare in the presence of our God, that he hath derived more pleasure from truth than from lies, then let Rao-Gong-Fao be thrown on his belly, and let his back be channelled for a bamboo-bed.
1829, Walter Savage Landor, “Conversation III. The King of Ava and Rao-Gong-Fao.”, in Imaginary Conversations of Literary Men and Statesmen, volume V (second series, volume II), London: James Duncan, […], →OCLC, page 113:We ate chow-chow with chop-sticks in the celestial restaurants; […]
1870–1871 (date written), Mark Twain [pseudonym; Samuel Langhorne Clemens], “”, in Roughing It, Hartford, Conn.: American Publishing Company [et al.], published 1872, →OCLC, page 396:
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(comparable, figuratively, not-comparable, usually) Extremely beautiful, good, or pleasurable; divine, heavenly, wonderful.
Dear Cecil: […] [W]hen are they in season and is there any way to judge which one to bring home? A really bad coconut is soooo yukky. But a really good coconut is so celestial. […] Sadie, Chicago. / Cecil replies: […] If you can hear the milk sloshing inside, odds are you’ve got a celestial coconut rather than a yukky one.
1974 July 16, Cecil Adams [pseudonym], “The Straight Dope: How Can You Tell a Good Coconut from a Yukky One?”, in Chicago Reader, Chicago, Ill.: Chicago Reader, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 30 Mar 2023:I think this a Pattern of a nevv Sort of Stile, not yet taken Notice of by the Criticks, vvhich is above the Sublime, and may be called the Celeſtial; that is, vvhen the moſt ſacred Phraſes appropriated to the Honour of the Deity are applied to a Mortal of Good Quality.
1713 March 24 (Gregorian calendar), [Alexander Pope], “Monday, March 16. 1713.”, in The Guardian, number 4, London: […] J[acob] Tonson […]; and sold by A. Baldwin […], →OCLC, page [2], column 1:
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(not-comparable, usually) Of or relating to heaven as the place where deities (or the Christian God), spiritual beings, etc., exist; heavenly.
Reaſon is the great diſtinction of human nature, the faculty by vvhich vve approach to ſome degree of aſſociation vvith celeſtial intelligences; […]
1751 October 15 (Gregorian calendar), Samuel Johnson, “No. 162. Friday, October 5. 1751.”, in The Rambler, volume VII, Edinburgh: […] Sands, Murray, and Cochran; sold by W. Gordon, C. Wright, J. Yair, […], published 1752, →OCLC, page 23:Thus ſhall my heart be ſtil combinde with thine, / Untill our bodies turne to Elements: / And both our ſoules aſpire celeſtiall thrones.
c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire; London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act I, scene ii:But farre above in ſpangled ſheen, / Celeſtiall Cupid her [Venus's] fam'd Son advanc't, / Holds his deare Pſyche ſvveet intranc't […]
1634 October 9 (first performance; Gregorian calendar), [John Milton], edited by H[enry] Lawes, A Maske Presented at Ludlow Castle, 1634: […] [Comus], London: […] [Augustine Matthews] for Hvmphrey Robinson, […], published 1637, →OCLC; reprinted as Comus: […] (Dodd, Mead & Company’s Facsimile Reprints of Rare Books; Literature Series; no. I), New York, N.Y.: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1903, →OCLC, page 35:[H]e [Jesus] charges them if at any time they come to offer with malice couchant in their breasts, that they should leave their gift at the Altar, and goe, be reconciled. […] It was spoken of the cælestiall temple, of which ours are adumbrations, or rather ours are the gates of that. Bethel or Gods house is the gate of Heaven.
(Can we date this quote?), Jeremy Taylor, “On the Reverence due to the Altar”, in Reginald Heber, Charles Page Eden, editors, The Whole Works of the Right Rev. Jeremy Taylor, D.D. […], revised edition, volume V, London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans; […], published 1849, →OCLC, page 324:A vision of both human civilization at its most celestial and human energy at its most brilliantly refined, it [Divertimento No. 15]'s one of the most exalted peaks of [George] Balanchine's idea of classical style.
2016 September 21, Alastair Macaulay, “Even Balanchine’s arithmetic contains drama”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 26 Sep 2016:But ſome man will ſaye: howe ſhall the deed [the resurrection of the dead] aryſe? with what body ſhall they come? […] There are celeſtiall bodyes⸝ and there are bodyes terreſtriall: Butt the glory of the celeſtiall is one⸝ and the glory off the terreſtriall is another.
1526, [William Tyndale, transl.], The Newe Testamẽt […] (Tyndale Bible), [Worms, Germany: Peter Schöffer], →OCLC, The Fyrst Pistle of Paul the Apostle to the Corrinthyans xv:[35 and 40], folio ccxxxiij, verso:Nature, like the Sphinx, is of womanly celestial loveliness and tenderness; the face and bosom of a goddess, but ending in claws and the body of a lioness. There is in her a celestial beauty,—which means celestial order, pliancy to wisdom; but there is also a darkness, a ferocity, fatality, which are infernal.
1843 April, Thomas Carlyle, “The Sphinx”, in Past and Present, American edition, Boston, Mass.: Charles C[offin] Little and James Brown, published 1843, →OCLC, book I (Proem), page 7:Alaſs poor Man, is the Cœleſtial Glory of ſo ſmall eſteem vvith him, that he counteth it, not vvorth running the hazards of a fevv difficulties to obtain it.
1678, John Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress from This World, to That which is to Come: […], London: […] Nath[aniel] Ponder […], →OCLC, page 16:
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(not-comparable, usually) Of or relating to heaven as the place where deities (or the Christian God), spiritual beings, etc., exist; heavenly. ▸ Of or relating to one or more deities, or the Christian God; divine, heavenly.
Deſire of Povver, on Earth a Vicious VVeed, / Yet, ſprung from High, is of Cæleſtial Seed: / In God 'tis Glory: And vvhen men Aſpire, / 'Tis but a Spark too much of Heavenly Fire.
1681, [John Dryden], Absalom and Achitophel. A Poem, London: […] J[acob] T[onson] and are to be sold by W. Davis […], →OCLC, page 10:
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(Mormonism, not-comparable, usually) Of or relating to heaven as the place where deities (or the Christian God), spiritual beings, etc., exist; heavenly. ▸ Of or relating to the celestial kingdom, the highest degree of glory.
As young people growing up in this upside-down world, you have quite a challenge confronting the various pressures of modern-day life. How will you make it through your teenage years spiritually prepared for your celestial future? How will you connect your celestial goals with your everyday life?
1997 October 4, Richard J. Maynes, “The Sustaining of Church Authorities and Officers [Elder Richard J. Maynes]”, in Official Report of the One Hundred Sixty-seventh Semiannual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Utah: October 4 and 5, 1997, Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, →OCLC, page 40, column 1:We are now living and obeying celestial laws that will make us candidates for celestial glory, or we are living terrestrial laws that will make us candidates for either terrestrial glory, or telestial law. The place we shall occupy in the eternal worlds will be determined by the obedience we yield to the laws of these various kingdoms during the time we have here in mortality upon the earth.
1947 April 4, Harold B[ingham] Lee, “Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles”, in One Hundred Seventeenth Annual Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Utah: April 4, 5 and 6, 1947: With Report of Discourses, Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 46:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| cælestial | alternative | lexicographic | |
| most celestial | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| more celestial | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic | |
| cælestiall | alternative | lexicographic | |
| cœlestial | alternative | lexicographic | |
| celestiall | alternative | lexicographic |
Deriveds
celestial peace · celestial guidance · under-celestial · celestialness · celestial horizon · celestial marriage · celestial teapot · uncelestial · celestial stem · celestialite · supracelestial · celestial plural marriage · supercelestial · celestial pole · telestial · celestial globe · celestial object · celestial transfer · celestial body · celestial blue · celestial equator · celestialize · celestiality · celestial longitude · celestial mechanics · celestial latitude · semicelestial · Celestial Empire · Celestial City · celestitude · celestial crown · celestial sphere · noncelestial · celestial navigation · subcelestial · subter-celestial · celestially
Relateds
Synonyms
celest · major · grandiose · celest · extraordinary · beat · heavenly · celest · fabulous · great · grand · mirandous · heavenlike · wild · beatific · wondrous · awesome · celest · based · finger-lickin' good · yuriful · fantabulosa · bewildering · stupendous · stupefying · blissful · selly · fascinating · splendid · divine · delightful · frabjous · luxurious · fantabulous · enchanting · supercalifragilisticexpialidocious · celestial · magnificent · unbelievable · mystifying · impressive · lovely jubbly · inspiring · phenomenal · majestic · marvellous/marvelous · grandeur
Translations (65)
gu આકાશીય (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ja 空の (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · io cielala (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · cy wybrennol (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ca celeste (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · sh nebèskī (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · uk небе́сний (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ist cialieste (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ko 하늘의 (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · vec celeste (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ms langit (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ms samawi (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ckb ئاسمانی (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · nv yáʼąąsh (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · he שמימית (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · sv himmelsk (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ur آسْمانی (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · fa-ira آسْمانی (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · bg небе́сен (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · hi आकाशीय (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · bg сла́вен ((Mormonism) of or relating to the celestial kingdom, the highest degree of glory) · fi taivaallinen ((Mormonism) of or relating to the celestial kingdom, the highest degree of glory) · fa-ira سَماوی (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · fi selestinen ((Mormonism) of or relating to the celestial kingdom, the highest degree of glory) · be сла́ўны ((Mormonism) of or relating to the celestial kingdom, the highest degree of glory) · es celeste (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · sq qiellor (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · tr semavi (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · de Himmels- (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ru сла́вный ((Mormonism) of or relating to the celestial kingdom, the highest degree of glory) · hu égi (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · fr céleste (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · pt celeste (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · el ουράνιος (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · pl niebiański (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · hy երկնային (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · it celeste (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · es celestial (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · cs nebeský (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · sv himmelsk ((Mormonism) of or relating to the celestial kingdom, the highest degree of glory) · vec zheleste (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · tg осмонӣ (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · cmn 天空的 (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · hi आसमानी (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · sh небѐскӣ (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ru небе́сный (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · eo ĉiela (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · cmn 天的 (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · he שְׁמֵימִי (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · hi अलौकिक (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · mt ċelestjali (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · sk nebeský (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · sl nebesen (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · la caelestis (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · srn heimel (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · pa ਅਸਮਾਨੀ (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · be нябе́сны (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ga spéartha (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ar سَمَاوِيّ (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ka ციური (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · fi taivas- (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · uk сла́вний ((Mormonism) of or relating to the celestial kingdom, the highest degree of glory) · ja 天空の (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · nl hemels (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space) · ro ceresc (of, relating to, or located in the sky or outer space)