I. ˈgäd sometimes ˈgȯd noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old Frisian & Old Saxon god, Old High German got, Old Norse goth, guth, Gothic guth god and probably to Old Irish guth voice, Greek kauchasthai to boast, Sanskrit havate he calls, invokes; basic meaning: to call, invoke
1. : a being of more than human attributes and powers ; especially : a superhuman person conceived as the ruler or sovereign embodiment of some aspect, attribute, or department of reality and to whom worship is due and acceptable
ancestor worship … occurs where gods are thought once to have been human beings — E.A.Hoebel
the grim wrath of the gods on high — J.B.Noss
the Greek gods of love and war
— often used interjectionally especially as a cap. oath
2. : an artificial or natural object (as a carved idol or an animal or tree) that is thought to be the seat of divine powers, the expression of a divine personality, or itself a supernatural or divine agency
also he makes a god and worships it — Isa 44:15 (Revised Standard Version)
not … every mummified and carefully buried animal had been a god — S.A.B.Mercer
3. : a person or thing that is honored as a god or deified : something held to be of supreme value
his father — the adored god who had unjustly condemned him — Douglas Hubble
power for power's sake was his mastering god — Hodding Carter
4. : one who wields great or despotic power
the ruling gods of the circulating libraries — Frederick Pollock
5.
a. : an occupant of the gallery of a theater
one young god between the acts favored the public with a song — W.M.Thackeray
b. gods plural : the gallery of a theater
the applause … came mainly from a crowd of youngsters in the gods — Frank Clune
6. : a human being of extraordinarily attractive physical stature
a god … with great broad shoulders and a magnificent chest — W.S.Maugham
•
- ye gods and little fishes
III. transitive verb
( godded ; godded ; godding ; gods )
: to treat as a god : worship , idolize , deify
how the good priest gods himself — Alfred Tennyson
this last old man … loved me above the measure of a father; nay, godded me indeed — Shakespeare