sabbath Meaning, Definition & Usage

noun a day of rest and worship: Sunday for most Christians; Saturday for the Jews and a few Christians; Friday for Muslims

OE. sabat, sabbat, F. sabbat, L. sabbatum, Gr. , fr. Heb. shabbath, fr. shabath to rest from labor. Cf. Sabbat.

A season or day of rest; one day in seven appointed for rest or worship, the observance of which was enjoined upon the Jews in the Decalogue, and has been continued by the Christian church with a transference of the day observed from the last to the first day of the week, which is called also Lord's Day.
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Ex. xx. 8.
The seventh year, observed among the Israelites as one of rest and festival. Lev. xxv. 4.
Fig.: A time of rest or repose; intermission of pain, effort, sorrow, or the like.
Peaceful sleep out the sabbath of the tomb. Pope.
Syn. -- Sabbath, Sunday. Sabbath is not strictly synonymous with Sunday. Sabbath denotes the institution; Sunday is the name of the first day of the week. The Sabbath of the Jews is on Saturday, and the Sabbath of most Christians on Sunday. In New England, the first day of the week has been called "the Sabbath," to mark it as holy time; Sunday is the word more commonly used, at present, in all parts of the United States, as it is in England. "So if we will be the children of our heavenly Father, we must be careful to keep the Christian Sabbathday, which is the Sunday." Homilies.