hallelujah
/ˌhæl.əˈl(j)uː.jə/
hallelujah means an exclamation used in songs of praise or thanksgiving to God. It carries an Arena rating of 1732, earned across 3 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, hallelujah ranks #2,387 of 17,052 for Most Storied Words, #2,596 of 17,052 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #2,691 of 17,052 for Most Satisfying to Say, #2,702 of 17,052 for The Improbable.
hallelujah is pronounced /ˌhæl.əˈl(j)uː.jə/.
Why “hallelujah” is a great word
An exclamation of praise or thanksgiving to God. From Hebrew הַלְּלוּ־יָהּ (halləlū-Yāh), meaning 'praise Yah (the Lord)', via Late Latin hallelujah and Greek ἀλληλούϊα (allēlouia). Unlike 'hosanna,' an urgent appeal for salvation, or 'amen,' a solemn affirmation of agreement, 'hallelujah' is a direct, jubilant injunction flung at the heavens. It is the burst of sunlight through stained glass, the clap of a thousand hands in unison, the single word that survives when language otherwise fails—the brief, insistent human insistence that praise is still possible, even necessary, in a world that offers no guarantee of being praised back.
intj
- An exclamation used in songs of praise or thanksgiving to God.
- A general expression of gratitude or adoration.e.g.“Hallelujah! It’s finally the weekend!”
noun
- A shout of “Hallelujah”.
- A song of praise to God; a musical composition based on the word "Hallelujah".
- General praise.e.g.“Who so stolid and selfish, that would not give his voice to swell the hallelujahs of a nation’s jubilee, when the chains of servitude had been torn from his limbs?”
verb
- To cry "hallelujah" in praise.e.g.“My aunt Gastonia […] she'd seen the Lord more times than they could ever count, and hallelujahed and hallelujahed, said, “While's all this the Gospel word and true, […]”
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- alleluia 73% match — A liturgical or variant form of hallelujah. vs hallelujah →
- hallel 68% match — A hymn of praise chanted during the Passover supper, consisting of Psalms cxiii to cxviii. vs hallelujah →
- alleluiatic 65% match — Pertaining to or consisting of an alleluia. vs hallelujah →
- hosanna 62% match — A cry of praise or adoration to God in liturgical use among the Jews, and said to have been shouted in recognition of the Messiahship of Jesus on his entry into Jerusalem; hence since used in the Christian Church. vs hallelujah →
- hallow 57% match — A saint; a holy person; an apostle. vs hallelujah →
- halloa 56% match — A loud exclamation; a call to invite attention to something or to incite; a shout. vs hallelujah →
- selah 55% match — A word occurring between verses or paragraphs in parts of the Hebrew Bible, namely in Habakkuk and the Psalms; perhaps indicating a pause, either for contemplation or for clearing the throat in singing. vs hallelujah →
- emaho 54% match — exclamation of wonder, joy and amazement vs hallelujah →