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Definition of grace noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

grace

noun
 
/ɡreɪs/
 
/ɡreɪs/
Idioms
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    of movement

  1. [uncountable] an attractive quality of movement that is smooth and done with control; a simple and beautiful quality
    • She moves with the natural grace of a ballerina.
    • a debut album of uncommon grace and beauty
    Topics Appearancec1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • easy
    • effortless
    • fluid
    verb + grace
    • have
    • move with
    preposition
    • with grace
    See full entry
  2. behaviour

  3. [uncountable] a quality of behaviour that is polite and pleasant and deserves respect
    • He conducted himself with grace and dignity throughout the trial.
    see also saving grace
  4. graces
    [plural] (especially British English) ways of behaving that people think are polite and acceptable
    • He was not particularly well versed in the social graces.
  5. extra time

  6. [uncountable] extra time that is given to somebody to enable them to pay a bill, finish a piece of work, etc.
    • They've given me a month's grace to get the money.
  7. of God

  8. [uncountable] the love that God shows towards the human race
    • the power of divine grace
    • It was only by the grace of God that they survived.
    • The mantra bestows Siva's grace upon the devotee.
    Collocations ReligionReligionBeing religious
    • believe in God/​Christ/​Allah/​free will/​predestination/​heaven and hell/​an afterlife/​reincarnation
    • be/​become a believer/​an atheist/​an agnostic/​a Christian/​Muslim/​Hindu/​Buddhist, etc.
    • convert to/​practise a religion/​Buddhism/​Catholicism/​Christianity/​Islam/​Judaism, etc.
    • go to church/(North American English) temple (= the synagogue)
    • go to the local church/​mosque/​synagogue/​gurdwara
    • belong to a church/​a religious community
    • join/​enter the church/​a convent/​a monastery/​a religious sect/​the clergy/​the priesthood
    • praise/​worship/​obey/​serve/​glorify God
    Celebrations and ritual
    • attend/​hold/​conduct/​lead a service
    • perform a ceremony/​a rite/​a ritual/​a baptism/​the Hajj/​a mitzvah
    • carry out/​perform a sacred/​burial/​funeral/​fertility/​purification rite
    • go on/​make a pilgrimage
    • celebrate Christmas/​Easter/​Eid/​Ramadan/​Hanukkah/​Passover/​Diwali
    • observe/​break the Sabbath/​a fast/​Ramadan
    • deliver/​preach/​hear a sermon
    • lead/​address the congregation
    • say/​recite a prayer/​blessing
    Religious texts and ideas
    • preach/​proclaim/​spread the word of God/​the Gospel/​the message of Islam
    • study/​follow the dharma/​the teachings of Buddha
    • read/​study/​understand/​interpret scripture/​the Bible/​the Koran/​the gospel/​the Torah
    • be based on/​derive from divine revelation
    • commit/​consider something heresy/​sacrilege
    Religious belief and experience
    • seek/​find/​gain enlightenment/​wisdom
    • strengthen/​lose your faith
    • keep/​practise/​practice/​abandon the faith
    • save/​purify/​lose your soul
    • obey/​follow/​keep/​break/​violate a commandment/​Islamic law/​Jewish law
    • be/​accept/​do God’s will
    • receive/​experience divine grace
    • achieve/​attain enlightenment/​salvation/​nirvana
    • undergo a conversion/​rebirth/​reincarnation
    • hear/​answer a prayer
    • commit/​confess/​forgive a sin
    • do/​perform penance
    Topics Religion and festivalsc2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • divine
    • heavenly
    • sublime
    verb + grace
    • bestow
    • confer
    • pour
    See full entry
  9. prayer

  10. [uncountable, countable] a short prayer that is usually said before a meal to thank God for the food
    • Let's say grace.
    Topics Religion and festivalsc2
  11. title

  12. His/Her/Your Grace
    [countable] used as a title of respect when talking to or about an archbishop, a duke or a duchess
    • Good Morning, Your Grace.
    • Their Graces the Duke and Duchess of Kent.
  13. see also coup de grâce, saving grace
    Word OriginMiddle English: via Old French from Latin gratia, from gratus ‘pleasing, thankful’; related to grateful.
Idioms
airs and graces
  1. (British English, disapproving) a way of behaving that shows that somebody thinks that they are more important, etc. than they really are synonym airs
    • Even when he became a star he didn’t have any airs and graces.
be in somebody’s good graces
  1. (formal) to have somebody’s approval and be liked by them
fall from grace
  1. to lose the trust or respect that people have for you, especially by doing something bad or morally wrong
somebody’s fall from grace
  1. a situation in which somebody loses the trust or respect that people have for them, especially because they have done something that is bad or morally wrong
    • The biography explains the circumstances surrounding her fall from grace.
have the (good) grace to do something
  1. to be polite enough to do something, especially when you have done something wrong
    • He didn't even have the grace to look embarrassed.
in a state of grace
  1. (in the Roman Catholic Church) having been forgiven by God for the wrong or evil things you have done
    • He died in a state of grace.
there but for the grace of God (go I)
  1. (saying) used to say that you could easily have been in the same difficult or unpleasant situation that somebody else is in
with (a) bad grace
  1. in an unwilling and/or rude way
    • He handed over the money with typical bad grace.
with (a) good grace
  1. in a willing and pleasant way
    • You must learn to accept defeat with good grace.
    • We will simply have to accept the situation with a good grace.
year of grace | year of our Lord
  1. (formal) any particular year after the birth of Christ
See grace in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
generic
adjective
 
 
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