hymn Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a song of praise (to God or to a saint or to a nation)
    anthem.
  2. verb sing a hymn
  3. verb praise by singing a hymn
    • They hymned their love of God

WordNet

Hymn noun
Etymology
OE. hympne, ympne, F. hymne, OF. also ymne, L. hymnus, Gr. perh. akin to web, to weave, and so to E. weave.
Definitions
  1. An ode or song of praise or adoration; especially, a religious ode, a sacred lyric; a song of praise or thankgiving intended to be used in religious service; as, the Homeric hymns; Watts' hymns.
    Admonishing one another in psalms and hymns. Col. iii. 16.
    Where angels first should practice hymns, and string Their tuneful harps. Dryden.
Hymn transitive verb
Etymology
Cf. L. hymnire, Gr. .
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Hymned ; present participle & verbal noun Hymning
Definitions
  1. To praise in song; to worship or extol by singing hymns; to sing.
    To hymn the bright of the Lord. Keble.
    Their praise is hymned by loftier harps than mine. Byron.
Hymn intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To sing in praise or adoration. Milton.

Webster 1913