Adjacent Words

Vesper definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

VES'PER, n. [L. This word and Hesperus are probably of one origin, and both from the root of west.]
1. The evening star; Venus; also, the evening.
2. Vespers, in the plural, the evening song or evening service in the Romish church.
Sicilian vespers, the era of the general massacre of the French in Sicily, or Easter evening, 1282, at the toll of the bell for vespers.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a planet (usually Venus) seen at sunset in the western sky [syn: evening star, Hesperus, Vesper]
2: a late afternoon or evening worship service

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Latin, evening, evening star — more at west Date: 14th century 1. capitalized, archaic evening star 2. a vesper bell 3. archaic evening, eventide II. adjective Date: 1791 of or relating to vespers or the evening

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 Venus as the evening star. 2 poet. evening. 3 (in pl.) a the sixth of the canonical hours of prayer. b evensong. Etymology: L vesper evening (star): sense 3 partly f. OF vespres f. eccl.L vesperas f. L vespera evening

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Vesper Ves"per, n. [L., the evening, the evening star, the west; akin to Gr. ?, ?, and perhaps to E. west. Cf. Hesperian, Vespers.] The evening star; Hesper; Venus, when seen after sunset; hence, the evening. --Shak.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Vesper Ves"per, a. Of or pertaining to the evening, or to the service of vespers; as, a vesper hymn; vesper bells. Vesper sparrow, the grass finch. See under Grass.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Evening E"ven*ing, n. [AS. [=ae]fnung. See even, n., and cf. Eve.] 1. The latter part and close of the day, and the beginning of darkness or night; properly, the decline of the day, or of the sum. In the ascending scale Of heaven, the stars that usher evening rose. --Milton. Note: Sometimes, especially in the Southern parts of the United States, the afternoon is called evening. --Bartlett. 2. The latter portion, as of life; the declining period, as of strength or glory. Note: Sometimes used adjectively; as, evening gun. ``Evening Prayer.'' --Shak. Evening flower (Bot.), a genus of iridaceous plants (Hesperantha) from the Cape of Good Hope, with sword-shaped leaves, and sweet-scented flowers which expand in the evening. Evening grosbeak (Zo["o]l.), an American singing bird (Coccothraustes vespertina) having a very large bill. Its color is olivaceous, with the crown, wings, and tail black, and the under tail coverts yellow. So called because it sings in the evening. Evening primrose. See under Primrose. The evening star, the bright star of early evening in the western sky, soon passing below the horizon; specifically, the planet Venus; -- called also Vesper and Hesperus. During portions of the year, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn are also evening stars. See Morning Star.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Hesperus, Hesper, Venus, evening star.

Moby Thesaurus

Mass, bedtime prayer, camp meeting, church, church service, close of day, cockshut, compline, crepuscular, devotions, divine service, dusk, dusky, duty, eve, even, evening, evening devotions, evensong, eventide, exercises, grayness, lauds, liturgy, matins, meeting, morning devotions, night song, nightfall, none, nones, novena, office, praise meeting, prayer, prayer meeting, prayers, prime, prime song, public worship, revival, revival meeting, service, setting sun, sext, shut of day, sundown, sunset, sunsetty, tent meeting, the expiring day, tierce, twilight, twilighty, undersong, vespers, vespertine, vigils, watch meeting, watch night, watch-night service