Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

beatify

American  
[bee-at-uh-fahy] / biˈæt əˌfaɪ /

verb (used with object)

beatified, beatifying
  1. to make blissfully happy.

  2. Roman Catholic Church. to declare (a deceased person) to be among the blessed and therefore entitled to local but not universal veneration.


beatify British  
/ bɪˌætɪfɪˈkeɪʃən, bɪˈætɪˌfaɪ /

verb

  1. (tr) RC Church (of the pope) to declare formally that (a deceased person) showed a heroic degree of holiness in his or her life and therefore is worthy of public veneration: the first step towards canonization

  2. (tr) to make extremely happy

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • beatification noun

Etymology

Origin of beatify

First recorded in 1525–35; from Middle French beatifier, from Late Latin beātificāre; beatific ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The service to beatify Jozef and Wiktoria Ulma and their seven children will be held on Sunday in the Polish town of Markowa where they died in March 1944.

From Reuters • Sep. 5, 2023

On the final day of his four-day visit to Britain, Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass to beatify Cardinal John Henry Newman, the 19th century Anglican convert.

From Washington Times • Sep. 19, 2020

Bruni leaps to beatify Christakis in his ascent to his pantheon of academic excellence, because a martyr must become a saint.

From Salon • Mar. 31, 2019

Francis will beatify two Colombian priests killed during decades of guerrilla warfare, declaring them “martyrs” who were killed out of hatred for the Catholic faith.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 5, 2017

If we regard clairvoyance as a normal faculty we are more likely to treat it normally than if we give it a paramount and exceptional value and seek to beatify those in whom it appears.

From Second Sight A study of Natural and Induced Clairvoyance by Sepharial