festivaladj.n.
/ˈfɛstᵻvl/, U.S. /ˈfɛstəv(ə)l/ A. adj.
1. Of or relating to a church feast or religious holiday; befitting a feast day. Now rare.Earliest in festival day n.In modern use usually apprehended as the noun used as a modifier, and hence no longer found in predicative use.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > social event > festive occasion > [adjective]
festival1389
feastfulc1425
festual1462
festal1479
gaudious1570
full-mouthed1610
festive1613
genial1620
festivous1782
society > faith > worship > liturgical year > feast, festival > [adjective]
ghostlyOE
holyc1000
goodOE
solemnc1325
festival1389
festiala1422
feastfulc1425
festal1479
spiritual1491
1389 in J. T. Smith & L. T. Smith Eng. Gilds (1870) 45 On candelle..brennend euery festiuale dai thorow-out þe yere.
c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness (1920) l. 136 Ne no festival frok.
a1439 J. Lydgate Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) iv. l. 3397 The day was halwed & holde festyual.
1545 G. Joye Expos. Daniel (vii.) f. 108v How many festiuall hygh dayes to worship saints haue thei made themselues.
1577 W. Fulke Answer True Christian 23 in Two Treat. against Papistes Such dayes are festiuall to those Saincts, that haue not their names in Callendars of other cuntries.
a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) iii. i. 2 This blessed day, Euer in France shall be kept festiuall . View more context for this quotation
1659 H. Hammond Paraphr. & Annot. Psalms (xxiii. 5 Paraphr.) 134 Thou entertainest me with wine and oyle in the most festival manner.
1774 T. Warton Hist. Eng. Poetry I. iii. 112 Sung to the harp by the poets of Provence at festival solemnities.
1849 G. Grote Hist. Greece VI. ii. xlviii. 111 Knowing no other festival recreation.
1885 Bible (R.V.) Isa. iii. 22 The festival robes and the mantles.
2018 L. Whitmore Mountain, Water, Rock, God i. 39 A pujari's job is to offer regular daily and festival worship to the deity/deities of a temple.
2. Glad, joyful, merry.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > pleasure > merriment > [adjective]
blitheOE
merryOE
golikc1175
lustya1225
playfulc1225
jollyc1305
merrya1350
jocund?c1380
galliardc1386
in (also on) a (merry, etc.) pinc1395
mirthfula1400
baudec1400
gayc1400
jovy1426
jocantc1440
crank1499
envoisiesa1500
as merry as a cricket1509
pleasant1530
frolic?1548
jolious1575
gleeful1586
buxom1590
gleesome1590
festival1592
laughter-loving1592
disposed1593
jucund1596
heartsomec1600
jovial1607
jovialist1610
laughsome1612
jocundary1618
gaysome1633
chirpinga1637
jovialissime1652
airy1654
festivous1654
hilarous1659
spleneticala1661
cocket1671
cranny1673
high1695
vogie1715
raffing?1719
festal1724
as merry (or lively) as a grig1728
hearty1755
tittuping1772
festive1774
fun-loving1776
mirthsome1787
Falstaffian1809
cranky1811
laughful1825
as lively as a cricket1832
hurrah1835
hilarious1838
Bacchic1865
laughterful1874
griggish1879
banzai1929
slap-you-on-the-back1932
1592 R. Dallington tr. F. Colonna Hypnerotomachia f. 97 The aierie Teda beloued of the mountains, celebrated and preserued for the festiuall Oreades [It. festigiante oreade].
1651 Bp. J. Taylor Rule of Holy Living (1727) 220 Our most festival and freeer joys.
c1686 in Roxburghe Ballads (1874) II. 138 My Festival Fellows was Roisterous Boys.
1798 T. Worcester Oration delivered at Salisbury 6 The History of our Nation renders no day more signal, and worthy of festival celebration, than the fourth of July.
1879 13th Ann. Rep. Board Pub. Instr. City of Albany 37 I trust that this first festival occasion may prove to be so interesting..that it shall become here, as it has in Boston, an established custom.
1906 Four-track News July 41/2 What space of grass there is left proves itself ‘common’ property only on such a highly festival occasion as election night.
2010 Sunday Tel. (Austral.) (Nexis) 31 Jan. 142 Peter Philips, creative director of make-up, designed them in a ‘cheerful and festival manner’.
B. n.† 1. A book containing a sermon for every feast day of the church calendar, frequently with illustrative narratives; = festial n. Obsolete.In early use with reference to John Mirk's Festial (see festial n.).
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > artefacts > book (general) > service book (general) > [noun] > for feast days
festiala1450
festival1486
festology1739
1486 J. Mirk's Liber Festiuall (Rood & Hunte) sig. ziij/2 Here endith the boke that is callid festiuall.
1491 Mirk's Festialis (Caxton) sig. aij/2 For this tretis speketh of all the hie festis of the yere. I wyll & praye that it be called festiuall [a1450 Claud. a Festial].
1610 A. Cooke Pope Joane in Harl. Misc. (1809) IV. 77 Or, if..you dare not read the scriptures, read your legends and festivals.
1652 E. Sparke Scintillula Altaris xxvi. sig. T8 There was an other Apostle of that Name, as you may Reade in his peculiar Festivall.
2. A day or period of celebration, typically for religious reasons; a feast day.harvest festival: see harvest festival n. at harvest n. Compounds 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > social event > festive occasion > [noun]
festivityc1410
rejoicingc1475
festivala1500
gaudy1535
show of misrule1555
gaudc1571
wake1577
festal1581
jubilee1589
gaudy-nighta1616
gala night1762
bridewain1789
gala1800
bean-feast1805
holinighta1821
let-off1827
glorification1843
pesta1964
society > faith > worship > liturgical year > feast, festival > [noun]
tidea900
holidayc950
massOE
holy-daya1000
mass-dayOE
high tideOE
holy-tidea1035
good tideOE
high dayOE
feastc1200
feast dayc1300
ferie1377
festival day1389
solemnity1390
solennityc1400
feastful day1440
festiala1450
festivala1500
sacre1542
panegyry1641
Magdalene-tide1649
church festival1661
surplice day1663
festa1800
festa day1835
fiesta1844
society > leisure > social event > festive occasion > [noun] > day or season of
high tideOE
high dayOE
feast dayc1300
ferie1377
festival day1389
feastful day1440
festivala1500
gaudy-day1567
carnival1598
utas1600
saturnal1605
Saturnalia1639
terminals1656
days of gala1716
fête dayc1759
mirth-day1778
season1791
festa1800
jour de fête1806
fiesta1844
fest1846
Winterval1982
a1500 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Nero) v. x. l. 2066 For þat causse þe Romanys Al þat ȝhere our helde festywalis, In turnnamentis and in iustynge.
1570 T. Wilson tr. Demosthenes 3 Orations 22 Iune, Iulie, and August past with much a doe, at the length in this moneth after the festiuals of Ceres [Gk. μετὰ τὰ μυστήρια] weare solempnised.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) i. viii. 26 Her Ashes..shall be at high Festiuals Before the Kings and Queenes of France. View more context for this quotation
1671 J. Milton Samson Agonistes 1598 The morning Trumpets Festival proclaim'd Through each high street. View more context for this quotation
1726 J. Ayliffe Parergon Juris Canonici Anglicani 472 These Holidays or Saints-Days..were in the ancient Church called Festivals.
1819 W. Irving Sketch Bk. v. 342 Of all the old festivals, however, that of Christmas awakens the..most heartfelt associations.
1832 H. Martineau Life in Wilds ix. 109 Children always ready to make a festival.
1918 B. Tarkington Magnificent Ambersons i. 12 But these people were gayest on New Year's Day; they made it a true festival.
1981 ODM Mar. 13/1 On Thursday 19th March the feast of St. Joseph of Nazareth..is a newcomer to the Church of England Calendar..; it is now a Festival—what we used to call a ‘Red-Letter Day’.
2017 Austrian Stud. 25 31 The most elaborate procession was on Corpus Christi, a festival associated particularly with the Habsburg monarchy.
3. An organized series of concerts, films, plays, or other themed events, typically held annually or every few years in the same place.book festival, film festival, jazz festival, music festival, etc.: see the first element.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > a performance > [noun] > music festival
stethva1612
festival1753
music festival1790
musical festival1804
Eisteddfod1822
Sängerfest1865
mod1891
Oireachtas1896
songfest1903
biennial1928
pop festival1951
folkfest1963
fleadh1966
rockfest1966
fleadh cheoil1972
festie1988
society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > drama > [noun] > dramatic performance > series of performances
festival1753
1753 Derby Mercury 28 Sept. 2/2 On the 19th and 20th Instant was celebrated in Salisbury their Anniversary Musical Festival, at which were present the greatest Appearance of Nobility and Gentry ever known on the like Occasion.
1851 Ladies Repository 1 Feb. 57/2 The whole formed a sort of singing festival, in airs well known to the people, and calculated to cherish their love of country.
1877 G. B. Shaw How to become Musical Critic (1960) 20 The forthcoming Wagner Festival at the Albert Hall.
1926 Publishers' Weekly 1 May 1474/2 The annual Shakespeare festival at Stratford-on-Avon.
1994 Glastonbury 24–26 June: Official Programme 15/1 Any band that's quoting Buddhist ideals, throwing in some Mongolian throat singing and yelling the praises of Stonehenge has got to have something to offer this festival.
2018 New Yorker 8 Jan. 10/2 This festival of contemporary dance and performance is as packed as ever, with about a dozen local and world premières and six remounts of notable recent work.
4. U.S. A celebratory or recreational event organized by an institution such as a church or school, esp. for charity or fundraising, a fair. Cf. fête n. 1b. Somewhat rare.Chiefly in the names of such events.
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society > trade and finance > selling > a public sale > [noun] > bazaar, jumble sale, or sale of work
bazaar1807
fair1826
fête1830
festival1843
church fair1844
sale of work1859
rummage sale1890
jumble-sale1898
jumble1931
mini-market1976
1843 Brooklyn Eagle & Kings County Democrat 26 Oct. The Ladies' Festival, in aid of and at Emmanuel Church, takes place this evening.
1944 Greeley (Colorado) Daily Tribune 21 Sept. 3/3 The annual mission festival, conducted by the Zion Evangelical Lutheran church Sunday.
2004 Lima (Ohio) News 5 Nov. b1/2 (caption) The students who sold their quota of raffle tickets for last week's annual school festival got the chance to pelt water balloons at the principal.
Phrases
P1. festival of the dead: any of various festivals in different religions and cultures commemorating deceased family or community members. Cf. Day of the Dead n. at day n. Phrases 6a(d). [Originally after French fête des morts (1738 in the passage translated in quot. 1740, here denoting the ancient Roman feast called Fērālia in classical Latin).]
ΚΠ
1740 tr. A. Banier Mythol. & Fables Ancients IV. Index sig. Kk7v Feralia, a Festival of the Dead [Fr. fête des morts], instituted by Eneas.
1776 N. B. Halhed tr. Code Gentoo Laws Preface 57 Neemtuk-kerm is the Performance of certain religious Acts, and of the Dàn, and of the Seràdeb (or Festivals of the Dead), and such other works.
1899 L. Hearn In Ghostly Japan vi. 79 The time of the Bon,—the great Festival of the Dead,—which begins upon the thirteenth day of the seventh month.
1985 P. L. Cuyler Sumo 25 In more recent folk traditions, the date, which coincided with the first quarter of the new moon, was set aside for the cleaning of the graves in preparation for the festival of the dead.
2002 B. Bates Real Middle Earth (2003) x. 124 The Celts' Samhain festival..was the great festival to mark the beginning of winter. It was also a festival of the dead.
P2. festival of colours: (chiefly with the, often with capital initials) the Hindu festival of Holi (see Holi n.).The name comes from the practice of participants throwing coloured powders over each other.
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > worship > liturgical year > feast, festival > other seasons and feasts > Hindu > [noun]
Diwali1698
puja1775
Onam1794
mela1801
Kumbh Mela1810
Navaratri1929
festival of colours1939
1939 Times of India 26 Aug. (Movitone Suppl.) 19/5 Director: A. R. Kardar..will offer you the colours of Indian culture in his forthcoming screen-sensation ‘Holi’ (the Spring festival of colours).
1956 R. Bond Room on Roof (2003) v. 27 Holi, the Festival of Colours, the arrival of spring, the rebirth of the new year.
2020 Pioneer (India) (Nexis) 12 Mar. Revellers splashed colours on each other as they exchanged embraces across the lanes and by-lanes in the city to celebrate the festival of colours.
Compounds
C1.
a. As a modifier. Designating people or things involved in the production or staging of a festival, or a performer, etc., appearing at a festival, as in festival committee, festival lineup, etc.
ΚΠ
1823 Morning Chron. 10 Oct. He..will also have the aid of the Festival Committee.
1837 Analyst 7 224 We consider the total neglect of Spohr a by no means venial error of the festival directors.
1947 San Antonio (Texas) Sunday Light 23 Nov. 9 c/2 A Wagnerian vehicle is included in the festival lineup for the first time this season.
1997 Big Issue 2 June 4/4 The systems pumped out music for after-hours party-goers after the official festival acts finished at 11pm.
b. With agent nouns and participles, forming compounds in which festival expresses the object of the underlying verb, as in festival-giver, festival-going, festival organizer, etc.
ΚΠ
1863 Liverpool Mercury 15 Aug. 7/3 By Friday the wreaths had disappeared, as had also most of the Turner uniforms, from the streets; and already Leipzig—the great festival giver, the queen of liberal, tasteful hospitality—has become once more Leipsig [sic] the quiet, earnest, commercial city.
1888 Evening Tel. & Star & Sheffield Daily Times 29 Aug. As the sole owner of the music out of which the Festival organisers hope to make profit, he has naturally imagined he was at least entitled to be contacted in connection with it.
1993 Economist 7 Aug. 84/3 The wealthy may not regain the festival-going habit.
2014 Design Week (Online ed.) 28 Apr. Cultural enthusiasts, festival lovers and music aficionados will be wooed by over 50 world-acclaimed entertainers and artisans.
C2.
festival circuit n. an established set or series of festivals within a particular field or genre, such as music, film, literature, etc.
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society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > [noun] > circuit > type of
festival circuit1899
small time1910
foxhole circuit1943
1899 N.Y. Times 17 Sept. 18/2 There is a regular festival circuit in the East and another in the West.
2019 Calgary Herald (Nexis) 25 Apr. c5 The best in international independent cinema featuring the biggest films on the festival circuit.
festival-goer n. a person attending a festival, or one who attends festivals regularly.Now usually with reference to music festivals.
ΚΠ
1834 Atlas 12 Oct. 649/2 We had no idea that a new oratorio would have half the attractions for the festival goers that proved to be the case.
1954 Q. Film, Radio & Television 8 239 Of outstanding success with festival-goers and critics alike were the films in which nonhuman nature was the chief protagonist.
1997 alt.music.kula-shaker 30 June (Usenet newsgroup, accessed 1 Oct. 2018) Jools mentioned that Kula Shaker played two sets... If that's true: lucky festival goers!
2018 Sunday Times (Ireland ed.) (Nexis) 25 Mar. (Rich List 2018 section) 19 Jazzier colours and slicker branding helped turn the boots into a must-have for celebrities and festival-goers.
festival headliner n. the act which takes top billing at (a particular day of) a music festival, typically appearing after all the other acts.
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society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > [noun] > a performance > item in > bill of items > chief place on
top line1906
star billing1910
festival headliner1927
top billing1968
1927 Amarillo (Texas) Daily News 6 Apr. (Home ed.) 4/1 The famous [Don José] Mojica..was the festival headliner here two years ago.
2018 Paisley Daily Express (Nexis) 23 Nov. 19 To this day, they [sc. Foo Fighters] are one of the best festival headliners in the world.
festival seating n. seating, or a seating area, at a venue for a concert, play, opera, etc.; (now) spec. seating that is not allocated to a particular ticket-holder; unreserved seating.
ΚΠ
1947 Daily Examiner (Grafton, New S. Wales) 26 Mar. 2/8 The festival seating is to be rented to the Show Society on a £10 rental, and a deposit of £50.
1972 Billboard 4 Mar. 43/1 Whole sections of festival seating are being removed to make dancing room.
2019 Star Phoenix (Saskatoon, Sask.) (Nexis) 26 Jan. (Early ed.) d3 I like to think I've got better at waiting.., but bank lineups, ticket sales, and waiting for a show where there's festival seating? Ask me how my Zen approach is going.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2021; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.n.1389- to lie deep
- to lie doggo
- to lie down
- to lie fair
- to lie fallow
- to lie for
- to lie for the whetstone
- to lie forth
- to lie full low
- to lie hard
- to lie heavy
- to lie heavy at or to one's heart
- to lie heavy on one's stomach
- to lie heavy upon
- to lie heavy, cold, etc formerly on the stomach
- to lie heavy, cold, etc on the stomach
- to lie heavy, cold, etc simply to lie on the stomach
- to lie hull
- to lie in
- to lie in ambush
- to lie in common
- to lie in grant
- to lie in great wait
- to lie in grip
- to lie in hand to do