Saints

n. person canonized by the Christian Church for his holy qualities; extremely holy person, very righteous person

v. recognize as a saint; canonize, add to the list of saints officially recognized by the Christian Church

According to the Bible, a saint is one who is sanctified (cf. 2 Chron. 6:41). The early Christians were all called saints. (Heb. 13:24; Jud. 1:3; Phile. 1:5, 7) Over time, the traditional usage of the term saint came to refer to a person who is recognized as having attained a certain level of holiness. It is used within Christianity, with definitions varying by denomination, but English-language publications will sometimes use saint to describe a revered person from another religion. The word itself means “holy” and is derived from the Latin sanctus. The concept originates in early Greek Christian literature with the use of the word hagios (Greek άγιος meaning “holy” or “holy one”) and in the New Testament, where it is used to describe the followers of Jesus of Nazareth. The use of saint in popular culture denotes a simple feeling of thanks and respect for their efforts.
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Noun
1. a person who has died and has been declared a saint by canonization
(hypernym) deity, divinity, god, immortal
(hyponym) patron saint
(member-holonym) sainthood
(derivation) canonize, canonise
2. person of exceptional holiness
(synonym) holy man, holy person, angel
(hypernym) good person
(hyponym) Buddha
(derivation) consecrate, bless, hallow, sanctify
3. model of excellence or perfection of a kind; one having no equal
(synonym) ideal, paragon, nonpareil, apotheosis, nonesuch, nonsuch
(hypernym) model, role model
(hyponym) jimdandy, jimhickey, crackerjack
(derivation) purify, purge, sanctify
Verb
1. hold sacred
(synonym) enshrine
(hypernym) reverence, fear, revere, venerate
2. in the Catholic church; declare (a dead person) to be a saint; "After he was shown to have performed a miracle, the priest was canonized"
(synonym) canonize, canonise
(hypernym) declare, adjudge, hold

adj. saintly, holy, sacred, blessed, saint

n. saint, person canonized by the Christian Church for his holy qualities; extremely holy person, very righteous person

[Other] In the New Testament, the name applied to the members of the Christian community generally, but restricted in ecclesiastical usage from very early times to those who have been virtuous to a heroic degree. There are several classes of saints: apostles and evangelists; martyrs; confessors, originally those who had undergone imprisonment or pains without the final crown of martyrdom and later male saints in general who were eminent for sanctity; doctors, saints eminent for sacred learning; virgins; and matrons and widows. There are two important sources for the many saints. The fullest list is found in the general table in the 61st volume of the Acta Sanctorum of the Bollandists, which mentions about 20,000 saints. The catalogue that possesses the highest ecclesiastical authority is that of the Martyrologium Romanum with some 2,700 saints, including about 20 saints of the Old Testament. Many saints have a feast day which is celebrated annually. All Saints' Day, also Allhallows or Hall...
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