View synonyms for angel

angel

[ eyn-juhl ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

one of a class of spiritual beings; a celestial attendant of God. In medieval angelology, angels constituted the lowest of the nine celestial orders (seraphim, cherubim, thrones, dominations or dominions, virtues, powers, principalities or princedoms, archangels, and angels).
a conventional representation of such a being, in human form, with wings, usually in white robes.
a messenger, especially of God.
a person who performs a mission of God or acts as if sent by God:
an angel of mercy.
a person having qualities generally attributed to an angel, as beauty, purity, or kindliness.
a person whose actions and thoughts are consistently virtuous.
an attendant or guardian spirit.
a deceased person whose soul is regarded as having been accepted into heaven.
a person who provides financial backing for some undertaking, as a play, political campaign, or business venture:
A group of angels entered the mix, providing George the leverage he needed to take the startup company in a new direction.
Angels seek deals that they can exit in less than a decade.
an English gold coin issued from 1470 to 1634, varying in value from 6s. 8d. to 10s. and bearing on its obverse a figure of the archangel Michael killing a dragon.
Slang. an image on a radar screen caused by a low-flying object, as a bird.

verb (used with object)

, an·geled, an·gel·ing or, especially British an·gelled, an·gel·ling.

Informal. to provide financial backing for:
Two wealthy friends angeled the Broadway revival of his show.

Angel

[ eyn-juhl; Spanish ahn-hel ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

a male or female given name.

angel

/ ˈeɪndʒəl /

noun

theol one of a class of spiritual beings attendant upon God. In medieval angelology they are divided by rank into nine orders: seraphim, cherubim, thrones, dominations (or dominions), virtues, powers, principalities (or princedoms), archangels, and angels
a divine messenger from God
a guardian spirit
a conventional representation of any of these beings, depicted in human form with wings
informal.
a person, esp a woman, who is kind, pure, or beautiful
informal.
an investor in a venture, esp a backer of a theatrical production
Also calledangel-noble a former English gold coin with a representation of the archangel Michael on it, first minted in Edward IV's reign
informal.
an unexplained signal on a radar screen

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Word History and Origins

Origin of angel¹

First recorded before 950; 1890–95 angel fordef 9; Middle English a(u)ngel, from Anglo-French, Old French, from Late Latin angelus, from New Testament Greek ángelos “messenger of God,” special use of Greek ángelos “messenger” (to translate Hebrew mal'ākh ), of disputed origin, frequently connected to ángaros “Persian mounted courier,” suggesting derivation from an uncertain source possibly akin to Akkadian agâru “to hire” or egertu “letter,” Persian angareh “journal, narrative,” or Sanskrit ajira “swift”; replacing Old English engel, from Latin, as above

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Word History and Origins

Origin of angel¹

Old English, from Late Latin angelus, from Greek angelos messenger

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Example Sentences

The financing journey began for Giles Palmer, with angel funding in 2006.

From TechCrunch

Everything was open for me, Angel and Faith and everything was just working for us.

From Washington Post

Her first name was a fitting one for someone who was a steadfast mentor and friend, and an angel to so many.

From MIT Technology Review

A university official kept an angel ornament made by a stranger.

From Washington Post

Balaji Srinivasan, an angel investor and entrepreneur who previously served as the Chief Technology Officer of Coinbase, earlier this month made a case for why India should embrace bitcoin.

From TechCrunch

Especially not when the display in question includes an angel falling from the sky in flames, surrounded by Biblical verses.

From The Daily Beast

Lindsay Ellingson, an “angel” for three years, said she had been inspired by Giselle and Heidi Klum.

From The Daily Beast

“I laid out there for two and a half hours and my guardian angel showed up—rapper T.I.,” Stapp told MTV News.

From The Daily Beast

It was the voice of an angel, but I wanted the face, the photos, the video of the family.

From The Daily Beast

Part Grim Reaper, part angel, this deathly saint had few followers, and they mostly worshipped in private.

From The Daily Beast

I reached the spot where she stood, she began to speak, and I took off my hat as if doing reverence to an angel.

From Project Gutenberg

"I do think Angel would surely want me to go, if she knew," thought Rosemary.

From Project Gutenberg

In two or three minutes Rosemary appeared once more, without her hat and coat, to say that "Angel" had not yet come back.

From Project Gutenberg

This was a hard nut to crack, if his past were not to be ruthlessly severed from Angel's by a word.

From Project Gutenberg

There was a scamp of a father who had "not been very kind" to Angel, and had been lost, or had thoughtfully lost himself.

From Project Gutenberg

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How Do You Spell angel?

Spelling tips for angel

The word angel is hard to spell for two reasons. First, it is very close in spelling to angle, as in the space between two lines that meet at a point. Second, the beginning sound [ eyn ] is not spelled the way it sounds.

How to spell angel: The first letter of angel is a, not e, because Angels are Amazing. The way to remember that angel ends in an l is that both devil and angel are celestial beings, and they both end in l. Similarly, angle and line are both mathematics terms, and they both end in e.

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