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Webster 1913 Edition

Bible

Bi′ble

(bī′b’l)
,
Noun.
[F.
bible
, L.
biblia
, pl., fr. Gr.
βιβλία
, pl. of
βιβλίον
, dim. of
βίβλος
,
βύβλος
, book, prop. Egyptian papyrus.]
1.
A book.
[Obs.]
Chaucer.
2.
The Book
by way of eminence, – that is, the book which is made up of the writings accepted by Christians as of divine origin and authority, whether such writings be in the original language, or translated; the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments; – sometimes in a restricted sense, the Old Testament;
as, King James’s
Bible
; Douay
Bible
; Luther's
Bible
. Also, the book which is made up of writings similarly accepted by the Jews;
as, a rabbinical
Bible
.
3.
A book containing the sacred writings belonging to any religion;
as, the Koran is often called the Muslim
Bible
.
Bible Society
,
an association for securing the multiplication and wide distribution of the Bible.
–
Douay Bible
.
See
Douay Bible
.
–
Geneva Bible
.
See under
Geneva
.

Webster 1828 Edition

Bible

BI'BLE

,
Noun.
[Gr. a book.]

Definition 2024

Bible

Bible

See also: bible

English

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈbaɪbəl/
  • Rhymes: -aɪbəl

Proper noun

Bible ‎(plural Bibles)

an open Bible
  1. The main religious text in Christianity.
    In my religion class we learn about the Bible, as well as religious texts of other religions.
    • 2009, Across the Spectrum: Understanding Issues in Evangelical Theology, page 16:
      Many non-Christians regard portions of the Bible as “inspiring,” but they do not believe the Bible was “inspired by God” […]
  2. The Jewish holy book that was largely incorporated into the Christian Bible.
    She's Jewish, but she doesn't read the Bible because she's not religious.
  3. The analogous holy book of another religion.
Derived terms
Synonyms
Coordinate terms
Derived terms
Translations

Noun

Bible ‎(plural Bibles)

  1. A specific version, edition, translation, or copy of one of the above-mentioned texts.
Synonyms
  • (specific version or copy): bible

See also

Etymology 2

From a Middle English diminutive of the given name Isabel.

Proper noun

Bible

  1. A matronymic surname​.

Middle French

Proper noun

Bible f

  1. The Bible (The Christian holy book; the Old and New Testaments)

bible

bible

See also: Bible

English

Noun

bible ‎(plural bibles)

  1. A comprehensive manual that describes something. (e.g., handyman’s bible).
    • 1995, Gary Wolf, "The Curse of Xanadu", Wired Magazine
      Computer Lib was written as a popular primer, but its most profound effect was on computer programmers, who needed little persuasion about the value of computers. Its tone – energetic, optimistic, inexhaustible, confused – matched theirs exactly. Having set out to appeal to the general public, Nelson managed to publish an insider's bible and highly intimate guide to hacker culture.
  2. (nautical) A holystone.

Translations

Related terms

Czech

Proper noun

bible f

  1. Bible

Declension

Derived terms

French

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /bibl/

Noun

bible f ‎(plural bibles)

  1. bible (comprehensive text)

Derived terms

Etymology

From Middle English bible, from Middle Latin biblia ‎(“book”) (misinterpreted as a feminine from earlier Latin neuter plural biblia ‎(“books”)), from Ancient Greek βιβλία ‎(biblía, “books”), plural of βιβλίον ‎(biblíon, “small book”), originally a diminutive of βίβλος ‎(bíblos, “book”), from βύβλος ‎(búblos, “papyrus”) (from the ancient Phoenician city of Byblos which exported this writing material).

Old English used biblioþēce (from βιβλιοθήκη) and ġewritu (whence English writs) for "the Scriptures".

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