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Definition 2024


bless_you

bless you

English

Interjection

bless you!

  1. Short for (may) God bless you: said as a short prayer for the recipient.
  2. (idiomatic) Said to someone who has just sneezed, as a polite remark.

See also

Usage notes

Saying bless you after a sneeze is not considered particularly religious. Those who say or receive the remark may or may not belong to a religion themselves, and no offense is usually intended by the speaker or taken by the recipient if the recipient is not religious by nature. English speakers not comfortable saying bless you might instead use the German loanword gesundheit.

Translations