Christ

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English Crist,^[2][3] inherited from Old English Crīst,^[2][4][5] borrowed from Latin Chrīstus,^[6][2][4] from Ancient Greek Χριστός (Khristós),^[6][4][7] the noun use of the verbal adjective meaning "anointed",^[6][8] from χρίειν (khríein, “to rub, anoint”),^[6][8] from Proto-Indo-European *ghrei- (“to rub”).^[8][2] The Greek word translates Biblical Hebrew מָשִׁיחַ (māšīaḥ, “anointed”),^[1][6][3] the source of messiah.^[1] The OED sees similar or shared borrowing in Old Frisian krist, Old Saxon krist and Old High German krist, and probably from West Germanic in Old Norse Kristr.^[6] The vowel is debated: Barnhart and Etymonline put the long i down to Irish missionary work in England in the 7th and 8th centuries,^[3][8] while the OED calls the early development unclear; long ī is confirmed by the spelling in the “Ormulum”, short ĭ by rhymes of the word with brest, and the Old English length is uncertain.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Anointed, the title of Jesus: Barnhart and Etymonline date the Old English word to about 830, in the Vespasian Psalter, and mention 675 according to the Peterborough Chronicle.^[3][8] The OED's earliest uses are all Old English: a divinely appointed ruler in the Lambeth Psalter, the promised Messiah, and Jesus himself.^[6]

Semantic evolution

In the early Church the word was a title used with the definite article, but from an early date it was also used without one and treated as part of Jesus's name.^[8] It replaced Hælend (“healer, saviour”), the more frequent name in Old English.^[3][8] The spelling with ch-, after Latin, was rare before about 1500 and became regular only then,^[3][8] and although capitalising the word became common in the late 14th century, the practice was not fixed until the 17th.^[3][8] The Old Testament sense of an anointed ruler died out by 1610,^[6] while the word could also mean an image of Jesus (before 1464) and, as a common noun, a saviour or redeemer (from 1528).^[6] Exclamations grew out of pious formulas: for Christ's sake goes back to Old English,^[6] by Christ to about 1300,^[6] and the bare exclamation of surprise or dismay is recorded by the OED in 1609 and by Etymonline by 1748.^[6][8] Christ on a bike and its variants date from 1928.^[6] Slang also uses the Christ as an intensifier, from 1945.^[9] A verb existed as well, used for christening from Old English and, among the mystical Familists of the 17th century, for making someone one with Christ.^[6][8]

Timeline

• c. 830 – Old English Crist, the Anointed, in the Vespasian Psalter.^[3][8]
• late 14th century – capitalisation becomes common.^[3]
• before 1464 – an image of Jesus.^[6]
• c. 1500 – the spelling Christ becomes standard.^[3][8]
• 1528 – a saviour or redeemer, as a common noun.^[6]
• 1609 – exclamation of surprise, dismay or disgust.^[6] Etymonline dates it to 1748.^[8]
• 1631 – verb, to make someone one with Christ.^[6]
• 1842 – Christ-child, translating German Christkind.^[8]
• 1928 – Christ on a bike and its variants.^[6]
• 1945 – slang, a general intensifier, the Christ.^[9]

Meanings

Noun

1. Jesus of Nazareth, regarded by Christians as fulfilling the prophecies of the Messiah.^[10][6][5]
2. The Messiah or anointed one foretold in the Hebrew Scriptures.^{[10][6][5][11]}
3. An image or picture of Jesus.^[10][6][5]
4. A person who resembles Jesus in outlook or actions; a saviour or redeemer.^[11][6]
5. In Christian Science, the ideal truth that comes as a divine manifestation of God.^[11]
6. A divinely appointed ruler or high priest, in some translations of the Old Testament (obsolete, Old English–1610).^[6][5]

Interjection

1. An oath expressing surprise, annoyance or dismay (taboo slang).^[10][6][5]

Word family

• Christlike
• Christlikeness
• Christliness
• Christly
• antichrist
• christen
• Christendom
• christening

Related words

• chrism
• Christian
• Christmas
• messiah

Usage notes

Collins labels the exclamation taboo slang, and the Shorter Oxford notes that it is often considered offensive.^[10][5]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
4. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d e f g Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
7. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
9. ^ a b Green, Jonathon (2010), Green's Dictionary of Slang, London: Chambers; digital ed. 2016–, https://greensdictofslang.com
10. ^ a b c d e Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
11. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster