unpray · verb — to annul or revoke (something previously prayed for) by prayer. It carries an Arena rating of 1498, earned across 50 head-to-head judged battles.
Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, unpray ranks #1,315 of 17,177 for Most Whimsical Words, #1,397 of 17,201 for Funniest Words, #2,137 of 17,205 for The Improbable, #2,747 of 17,151 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound.
unpray is pronounced /ʌnˈpɹeɪ/.
Why “unpray” is a great word
UNPRAY — [Verb] To annul or revoke something previously prayed for by means of a subsequent prayer. From the English prefix un- (expressing reversal) + the verb pray, originally modelled on a French lexical item; first attested in 1611. Unlike "revoke," which cancels a worldly mandate, or "retract," which withdraws a human statement, to unpray is the theological paradox of petitioning a deity to rescind a prior petition. It is the frantic bargain to undo a wish for rain as the floodwaters rise; the quiet revocation of a prayer for glory, now begged for safe cowardice; the formal liturgy composed to cancel a blessing that has curdled into a curse—a mortal's futile reach for an eraser in a universe of permanent ink.
❧ Essay by Lexicurio’s AI · definition, etymology & citations from published sources
Etymology
From un- + pray.
verb
- To annul or revoke (something previously prayed for) by prayer.e.g.“he found himselfe overwhelmed in the injoying of his desire, and being enrich't with an intolerable commoditie, he must now unpray his prayers[…].” — 1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 12, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- unpreach 71% match — To undo or overthrow (something) by preaching; to revoke (something preached before). vs unpray →
- unwish 68% match — To wish not to be; to destroy by wishing. vs unpray →
- unpay 65% match — To undo, take back, or cancel (a payment etc.). vs unpray →
- unpope 64% match — To divest of the character, office, or authority of a pope. vs unpray →
- unswear 64% match — To recall a previously sworn oath. vs unpray →
- unspell 63% match — To break the power of (a spell); to release (a person) from the influence of a spell; to disenchant. vs unpray →
- unsin 63% match — To undo or annul a past sin. vs unpray →
- unbespeak 63% match — To unsay; to annul or cancel something that has been said. vs unpray →