bible

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See also: Bible

English

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English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Etymology

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From Middle English bible, from Middle Latin biblia (book) (misinterpreted as a feminine from earlier Latin neuter plural biblia (books)), from Ancient Greek βιβλία (biblía, books), plural of βιβλίον (biblíon, small book), originally a diminutive of βίβλος (bíblos, book), from βύβλος (búblos, papyrus) (from the ancient Phoenician city of Byblos which exported this writing material).

Old English used biblioþēce (from βιβλιοθήκη) and ġewritu (> English writs) for "the Scriptures".

Pronunciation

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  • (UK, US) IPA(key): /ˈbaɪbəl/
  • Audio (US):(file)
  • Rhymes: -aɪbəl

Noun

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bible (plural bibles)

  1. Alternative letter-case form of Bible (a specific version, edition, translation, or copy of the Christian religious text)
    • 2012 September 8, Cass Jones, “Elvis Presley's bible sells for £59,000”, in The Guardian[1]:
      The bible was used by Presley throughout his life until his death on 16 August 1977 and contains his handwritten notes, thoughts and annotations.
  2. Alternative letter-case form of Bible (the analogous holy book of another religion)
    • 1925, Etsu Inagaki Sugimoto, A Daughter of the Samurai, page 76:
      The Buddhist bible tells this story of Buddha’s time of temptation when he was living as a hermit on the Mount of Snow.
  3. (by extension) A comprehensive manual that describes something, or a publication with a loyal readership.
    handyman’s bible
    • 1995 June, Gary Wolf, “The Curse of Xanadu”, in Wired Magazine[2]:
      Computer Lib was written as a popular primer, but its most profound effect was on computer programmers, who needed little persuasion about the value of computers. [] Having set out to appeal to the general public, Nelson managed to publish an insider's bible and highly intimate guide to hacker culture.
    • 1995 September, Richard Barbrook, Andy Cameron, “The Californian Ideology”, in Mute[3], volume 1, number 3, →ISSN:
      For example, Wired—the monthly bible of the ‘virtual class’—has uncritically reproduced the views of Newt Gingrich, []
  4. (law) A binder containing copies of the most important documents for a particular matter.
    Could you please add these to the case bible?
  5. (nautical) Synonym of holystone: a piece of sandstone used for scouring wooden decks on ships.
  6. (at certain US universities) A compilation of problems and solutions from previous years of a given course, used by some students to cheat on tests or assignments.
    • 1965, Matt Fichtenbaum, Dan Murphy, “The Institute Screw”, in The Broadside of Boston, volume III, number 22:
      My friend’s a genius, he will give me problems one through nine. The bible of a sophomore will have the needed lines.
  7. Omasum, the third compartment of the stomach of ruminants
    Synonyms: psalterium, omasum, manyplies, fardel
  8. (locksmithing) The upper part of a pin-tumbler lock, containing the driver pins and springs.

Derived terms

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Translations

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Czech

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Inherited from Old Czech biblí, from Latin biblia.

Pronunciation

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Proper noun

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bible f (related adjective biblický)

  1. Bible

Declension

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Derived terms

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Further reading

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  • bible”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
  • bible”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
  • bible”, in Internetová jazyková příručka (in Czech)

French

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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bible f (plural bibles)

  1. bible (comprehensive text)

Derived terms

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Further reading

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Middle English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Old French bible, from Medieval Latin biblia, from biblia), from Ancient Greek βιβλία (biblía).

Pronunciation

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Proper noun

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bible

  1. The Bible (Christian holy book); a copy of the Bible.
  2. (rare) The Koran (Muslim holy book).

Descendants

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  • English: Bible
  • Scots: Bible

References

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Noun

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bible

  1. Any book that is of extensive length.
  2. A compendium, collection, or storehouse of books.

Descendants

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References

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