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apocalypse - 7 dictionary results

a⋅poc⋅a⋅lypse

  [uh-pok-uh-lips]
Use apocalypse in a Sentence
–noun
1. (initial capital letter) revelation (def. 4).
2. any of a class of Jewish or Christian writings that appeared from about 200 b.c. to a.d. 350 and were assumed to make revelations of the ultimate divine purpose.
3. a prophetic revelation, esp. concerning a cataclysm in which the forces of good permanently triumph over the forces of evil.
4. any revelation or prophecy.
5. any universal or widespread destruction or disaster: the apocalypse of nuclear war.
Origin:
1125–75; ME < LL apocalypsis < Gk apokálypsis revelation, equiv. to apokalýp(tein) to uncover, reveal (apo- apo- + kalýptein to cover, conceal) + -sis -sis
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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a·poc·a·lypse   (ə-pŏk'ə-lĭps')   
n.  
    1. Apocalypse Abbr. Apoc. Bible The Book of Revelation.
    2. Any of a number of anonymous Jewish or Christian texts from around the second century B.C. to the second century A.D. containing prophetic or symbolic visions, especially of the imminent destruction of the world and the salvation of the righteous.
  2. Great or total devastation; doom: the apocalypse of nuclear war.
  3. A prophetic disclosure; a revelation.

[Middle English Apocalipse, from Late Latin Apocalypsis, from Greek apokalupsis, revelation, Apocalypse, from apokaluptein, to uncover : apo-, apo- + kaluptein, to cover; see kel-1 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Apocalypse

A*poc"a*lypse\, n. [L. apocalypsis, Gr. ?, fr. ? to uncover, to disclose; ? from + ? to cover, conceal: cf. F. apocalypse.]

1. The revelation delivered to St. John, in the isle of Patmos, near the close of the first century, forming the last book of the New Testament.

2. Anything viewed as a revelation; a disclosure.

The new apocalypse of Nature. --Carlyle.

Apocalypse

A*poc"a*lypse\, n. (Eccl.) One of a numerous class of writings proceeding from Jewish authors between 250 b. c. and 150 a. d., and designed to propagate the Jewish faith or to cheer the hearts of the Jewish people with the promise of deliverance and glory; or proceeding from Christian authors of the opening centuries and designed to portray the future.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Apocalypse [(uh-pok-uh-lips)]

Another name for the New Testament Book of Revelation; from the Greek word for “revelation.”

Note: An “apocalypse” is a final catastrophe.
Note: The Apocalypse is supposed to come at the end of the world or of time.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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apocalypse 
c.1384, "revelation, disclosure," from Church L. apocalypsis "revelation," from Gk. apokalyptein "uncover," from apo- "from" (see apo-) + kalyptein "to cover, conceal" (see Calypso). The Christian end-of-the-world story is part of the revelation in John of Patmos' book "Apokalypsis" (a title rendered into Eng. as "Apocalypse" c.1230 and "Revelations" by Wyclif c.1380).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Apocalypse

the Greek name of the Book of Revelation (q.v.).

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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