Kiddush
/ˈkɪdɪʃ/noun
A Jewish blessing recited over wine or grape juice to sanctify the Sabbath or a festival.
Did you know?Kiddush transforms the start of Shabbat into a ritual threshold: the blessing is traditionally spoken over wine, linking speech, time, and holiness.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*q-d-š
“A root associated with holiness, sacredness, and being set apart”
Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew
קֹדֶשׁ (qōdesh)
“Holiness; a sacred or set-apart thing”
Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew
קָדוֹשׁ (qadosh)
“Holy; sacred; set apart”
Rabbinic Hebrew
Hebrew
קִדּוּשׁ (qiddūsh)
“Sanctification, especially the ritual sanctification of the Sabbath or festivals”
Medieval Hebrew
Hebrew
קידוש
“A blessing or ceremony declaring sacred time”
Modern English
English
kiddush
“A Jewish blessing or ceremony over wine inaugurating the Sabbath or a festival”