# epiphany

Pronunciation: say "i-PIF-uh-nee" /ɪˈpɪfəni/

## Noun

1. A sudden, illuminating realization or discovery, often bringing a feeling of elation, awe, or wonder.
   - Simple: A sudden moment when you understand something important, often with a happy or amazed feeling.
   - _Standing in the rain at the bus stop, he had an epiphany: he hated his job and always had._
   - _The novel builds toward a quiet epiphany in which the daughter finally sees her father clearly._
4. The appearance or manifestation of a god or other divine or superhuman being.
   - Simple: A time when a god or another being with special powers appears to people.
   - _Greek myth is full of divine epiphanies, as when a god meets a hero in the shape of an old man._
   - _The poet imagines the sea goddess in her epiphany as a great white wave._

## Noun · Epiphany

2. A yearly Christian feast, and the day it falls on, celebrating the revealing of Christ's divinity, usually held on January 6, the twelfth day after Christmas.
   - Simple: A Christian holiday, usually on January 6, that remembers the moments when Jesus was shown to be divine.
   - _In Spain, many children receive their presents on Epiphany rather than on Christmas Day._
   - _The parish marks the Feast of the Epiphany with a procession of the three kings._
3. The revealing of Jesus Christ's divinity, above all to the Magi, but also at his baptism and at the wedding at Cana.
   - Simple: Jesus being shown as divine, above all to the wise men, and also at his baptism and a wedding.
   - _Medieval artists pictured the Epiphany as three kings presenting gold, frankincense, and myrrh._
   - _Early writers counted three Epiphanies: to the Magi, at the Jordan, and at Cana._
5. The season of the Christian year running from the feast of the Epiphany to Shrove Tuesday, just before Lent, or to Candlemas, the feast of Christ's presentation in the Temple.
   - Simple: The weeks of the church year after the Epiphany holiday, lasting until just before Lent or until a feast called Candlemas.
   - _Throughout Epiphany, the Sunday readings follow the early ministry of Jesus._
   - _The church leaves its nativity scene in place until Candlemas brings Epiphany to a close._

## Other meanings

- (proper noun) A first name given to girls.

## Origin

PIE word *h₁epi See epiphany.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/epiphany (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).