Saint is an adjective. The word refers to the masculine gender. This article will focus on its lexical meaning. And the adjective has several of them. It is used in various speech situations and can denote several qualities. Here are six meanings of the word "holy" with sample sentences.
With supernatural powers
This definition is used in religious texts. That is, something or someone possesses unearthly qualities, is perfect and remote from sin. In some cases, "saint" is capitalized.
For example: "Saint Nicholas".
Related to church rites or sacraments
There are many different rituals associated with religion. Believers also honor places of pilgrimage, which serve as a kind of spiritual nourishment. The word in this meaning is often mentioned in the Bible.
For example: "Holy Land".
Dedicated his whole life to the service of God, suffered because of faith
Go to the next meaning of the word "saint". Some people give their lives to serve. That's all they do.
Or a person suffered for his faith, suffered bullying or contempt, experienced torment.
Example of usage: "The Holy Apostle John is depicted on many church canvases".
Pure and unblemished, without sin
This characterizes a person who lives righteously. That is, his thoughts are pure, he does not do bad deeds, he has morality.
Example: "Marya Gavrilovna is a holy woman, she will never play dirty tricks behind her back".
Very important, respected and honorable
The adjective "saint" can be used to describe an honorable duty, an important deed that affects the lives of others. This is a task that must be completed. This is how you can describe, for example, a duty that must be fulfilled without fail.
Example: "To defend the motherland from enemies is a sacred duty, every citizen should remember this."
Real or true
This is how you can describe something true, real and genuine. Usually this meaning has a certain tinge of approval, when the author emphasizes the veracity of something.
For example: "I'm telling you the holy truth here, but you flatly refuse to believe me!"
All words in Russian can be conditionally divided into two groups:
- unambiguous (one interpretation);
- multi-valued (you can pick up several definitions). "Saint" is a word from the second group.
Now the lexical meaningthe word "saint" will not confuse you. This speech unit has six interpretations. This adjective is most often used in church texts. But it is also found in colloquial as well as artistic style of speech.
