In some religions, heaven is said to be the place where God lives, where good people go when they die, and where everyone is always happy. It is usually imagined as being high up in the sky.
I believed that when I died I would go to heaven and see God.
Synonyms: paradise, next world, hereafter, nirvana [Buddhism, Hinduism] More Synonyms of heaven
2. uncountable noun
You can use heaven to refer to a place or situation that you like very much.
[informal]
We went touring in Wales and Ireland. It was heaven.
I was in cinematic heaven.
3. plural noun
The heavens are the sky.
[old-fashioned]
He walked out into the middle of the road, looking up at the heavens.
...a detailed map of the heavens.
4. See also seventh heaven
5.
See heaven forbid
6.
See good heavens
7.
See heaven help sb
8.
See heaven knows
9.
See heaven knows
10.
See to move heaven and earth
11.
See in heaven's name
12.
See the heavens open
13. for heaven's sake
14. thank heavens
More Synonyms of heaven
heaven in British English
(ˈhɛvən)
noun
1. (sometimes capital) Christianity
a.
the abode of God and the angels
b.
a place or state of communion with God after death
Compare hell
2. (usually plural)
the sky, firmament, or space surrounding the earth
3.
(in any of various mythologies) a place, such as Elysium or Valhalla, to which those who have died in the gods' favour are brought to dwell in happiness
4.
a place or state of joy and happiness
5. (singular; orplural; sometimes capital)
God or the gods, used in exclamatory phrases of surprise, exasperation, etc
for heaven's sake
heavens above
6. in seventh heaven
7. move heaven and earth
Word origin
Old English heofon; related to Old Saxon heban
heaven in American English
(ˈhɛvən)
noun
1. [usually pl.]
the space surrounding or seeming to overarch the earth, in which the sun, moon, and stars appear; visible sky; firmament
, in pl., used with the
2. [oftenH-]; Theology
a.
a state or place of complete happiness or perfect rest, attained by the good after death; specif. esp., in Christian theology, the state or place of perfect union with God and so of eternal life and supreme happiness, attained by the elect after death
b. Popularly
the abode of God, his angels, and the blessed
c.
those in heaven
d.
the powers of heaven; also, God
Heaven help you!
3.
a.
any place of great beauty and pleasure
b.
a state of great happiness
Idioms:
move heaven and earth
Word origin
ME heven < OE heofon < IE base *em-, to cover (> LL camisia, shirt): akin to OHG himil and to OS hevan, ON, himinn (dat. hifne), with -fn, -v-n < -mn by dissimilation
More idioms containing
heaven
move heaven and earth
in seventh heaven
Examples of 'heaven' in a sentence
heaven
When I come to heaven, shall I be able to say to any there, Lord!
Salley Vickers INSTANCES OF THE NUMBER 3 (2002)
Her voice seemed to come from a million miles away: `To heaven.
Hugo Wilcken THE EXECUTION (2002)
She had created a little heaven from a sooty expanse between four ugly chimneys.
Barbara Erskine HIDING FROM THE LIGHT (2002)
He would not have to hustle heaven, because he was heaven 's draft choice.
Jacquelyn Mitchard A THEORY OF RELATIVITY (2002)
Quotations
In my father's house are many mansionsBible: St. John
Work and pray Live on hay You'll get pie in the sky when you dieJoe HillThe Preacher and the Slave
The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seedBible: St. Matthew
The kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls; who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought itBible: St. Matthew
The heaven of each is but what each desiresThomas MooreLalla Rookh
heaven: a place where the wicked cease from troubling you with talk of their personal affairs, and the good listen with attention while you expound your ownAmbrose BierceThe Devil's Dictionary
In other languages
heaven
British English: heaven /ˈhɛvn/ NOUN
In some religions, heaven is said to be the place where God lives and where good people go when they die.
I believe that when I die I will go to heaven.
American English: heaven
Arabic: جَنَّة
Brazilian Portuguese: paraíso
Chinese: 天堂
Croatian: nebesa
Czech: nebe
Danish: himlen himmerige
Dutch: hemel hemelrijk
European Spanish: cielo religioso
Finnish: taivas uskonnollinen
French: paradis
German: Himmel
Greek: παράδεισος
Italian: paradiso
Japanese: 天国
Korean: 천국
Norwegian: himmel
Polish: niebo raj
European Portuguese: paraíso
Romanian: rai
Russian: небеса
Latin American Spanish: cielo
Swedish: himmel
Thai: สวรรค์
Turkish: cennet
Ukrainian: небеса
Vietnamese: thiên đường
All related terms of 'heaven'
heaven-sent
You use heaven-sent to describe something such as an opportunity which is unexpected , but which is very welcome because it occurs at just the right time.
hog heaven
a state of great ease or happiness
heaven forbid
You say ' Heaven forbid ! ' to emphasize that you very much hope that something will not happen .
heaven knows
You can say ' Heaven knows ' to emphasize that you do not know something, or that you find something very surprising .
seventh heaven
If you say that you are in seventh heaven , you mean that you are in a state of complete happiness.
heaven help sb
You say ' Heaven help someone' when you are worried that something bad is going to happen to them, often because you disapprove of what they are doing or the way they are behaving .
tree of heaven
a fast-growing ailanthus ( Ailanthus altissima ), native to China but widely cultivated in the U.S. as a shade tree
in heaven's name
You can use in heaven's name in questions beginning with 'what', 'when', 'who', 'why', and 'how' to add emphasis in a way that shows that you are very angry or surprised .
in seventh heaven
extremely happy
manna from heaven
If you say that something unexpected is manna from heaven , you mean that it is good and happened just at the time that it was needed .
for heaven's sake!
a mild exclamation of surprise , annoyance , etc.
move heaven and earth
to do everything you possibly can to make sure that something happens
to move heaven and earth
If you move heaven and earth to do something, you try as hard as you can to do it.
heaven/god/lord/christ etc knows
People use expressions such as goodness knows , Heaven knows , and God knows when they do not know something and want to suggest that nobody could possibly know it.
for God's sake for goodness sake for heaven's sake
Some people use expressions such as for God's sake , for heaven's sake , for goodness sake , or for Pete's sake in order to express annoyance or impatience , or to add force to a question or request . The expressions 'for God's sake' and 'for Christ's sake' could cause offence .
Chinese translation of 'heaven'
heaven
(ˈhɛvn)
n(u)
(Rel, inf) 天堂 (tiāntáng)
to move heaven and earth to do sth竭尽(盡)全力做某事 (jiéjìn quánlì zuò mǒushì)
heaven forbid!千万(萬)不要! (qiānwàn bùyào!)
Derived Forms
heavensn pl : the heavens (liter) 天空 (tiānkōng) : the heavens opened下了一场(場)倾(傾)盆大雨 (xiàle yī cháng qīngpén dàyǔ)
1 (noun)
Definition
the place where God is believed to live and where those leading good lives are believed to go when they die
I believed that when I died I would go to heaven.
Synonyms
paradise
They believe they will go to paradise when they die.
next world
I believe we shall meet our departed loved ones in the next world.
hereafter
nirvana (Buddhism, Hinduism)
They believe in a continuous cycle of births and deaths until the soul is perfected and achieves nirvana.
bliss
Zion (Christianity)
Valhalla (Norse mythology)
Happy Valley
happy hunting ground (mythology)
life to come
life everlasting
abode of God
Elysium or Elysian fields (Greek mythology)
2 (noun)
Definition
a place or state of happiness
(informal)
My idea of heaven is hiking with friends on a sunny day.
Synonyms
happiness
I think she was looking for happiness.
paradise
This job is paradise compared to my last one.
ecstasy
the agony and ecstasy of holiday romance
bliss
It was a scene of such domestic bliss.
felicity
a period of domestic felicity
utopia
We weren't out to design a contemporary utopia.
contentment
I cannot describe the feeling of contentment that was with me at that time.
rapture
His speech was received with rapture by his supporters.
enchantment
The campsite had its own peculiar enchantment.
dreamland
seventh heaven
transport
transports of joy
sheer bliss
idioms
See in seventh heaven
See move heaven and earth
See the heavens
related words
related phobiaouranophobia
Quotations
In my father's house are many mansions [Bible: St. John]Work and pray Live on hay You'll get pie in the sky when you die [Joe Hill – The Preacher and the Slave]The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed [Bible: St. Matthew]The kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls; who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it [Bible: St. Matthew]The heaven of each is but what each desires [Thomas Moore – Lalla Rookh]heaven: a place where the wicked cease from troubling you with talk of their personal affairs, and the good listen with attention while you expound your own [Ambrose Bierce – The Devil's Dictionary]
Additional synonyms
in the sense of bliss
Definition
perfect happiness
It was a scene of such domestic bliss.
Synonyms
joy,
ecstasy,
euphoria,
rapture,
nirvana,
felicity,
gladness,
blissfulness,
delight,
pleasure,
heaven (informal),
satisfaction,
happiness,
paradise
in the sense of contentment
I cannot describe the feeling of contentment that was with me at that time.