Esther

[ es-ter ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

the wife of Ahasuerus.
a book of the Bible bearing her name. : Esth.
a number of prayers, visions, interpretations of dreams, etc., that are included in the Douay Bible as chapters 10–16.
a female given name.

Esther

/ ˈɛ��ə /

noun

a beautiful Jewish woman who became queen of Persia and saved her people from massacre
the book in which this episode is recounted

Esther

A book of the Old Testament that tells the story of a beautiful Jewish woman named Esther who is chosen by the king of Persia (now Iran ; see Persian Empire ) to be his queen. Esther, with the aid of her cousin Mordecai, stops a plot to massacre the Jews (see also Jews ) in Persia, and Mordecai becomes the king's chief minister.

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Notes

This event is celebrated by Jews as the feast of Purim .

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Word History and Origins

Origin of Esther¹

First recorded in 1600–10; from Latin Hester, from Greek ��ٳ�ŧ��, from Hebrew ��ŧ��; further origin uncertain; possibly from Persian sitareh, setāre “star, fate”; possibly from Akkadian Ishtar; Aphrodite ( def ), Ishtar ( def ), star ( def )

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

At a local factory, he worked closely with Esther Ballestrino, who campaigned against Argentina's military dictatorship.

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Campaigner Esther Ghey has told the BBC she is "frustrated" at the government's approach to online safety, warning that "young people are losing their lives".

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Poodle-dog sprang up quickly in some areas seared by the Bridge fire, according to Esther Lewis, a botanist with the U.S.

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Last week, Ofcom also withdrew three previous rulings against GB News programmes hosted by Conservative MP Esther McVey and her husband, former MP Philip Davies.

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Any one of us can be an Esther.

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Esth.esthesia

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