Meaning & use
hymn
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Meanings
nouncountable
A religious song of praise or worship, typically sung during a church service.
Grammar: Countable; you can say 'a hymn' or 'hymns'. The 'n' at the end is silent.
Patterns
- sing a hymn
- a hymn to something
- the opening hymn
The congregation stood to sing the opening hymn.
That hymn is often sung at weddings.
nouncountablefigurative
A song or poem that praises someone or something.
Grammar: Often used figuratively, as in 'a hymn to freedom'.
Patterns
- a hymn to something
- a hymn of praise
The film is a hymn to the beauty of the natural world.
His speech was a hymn of praise to the workers.
Word forms
| plural | hymns |
|---|
Common combinations
- sing a hymn
- We sang a hymn before the sermon.
- a hymn of praise
- The choir performed a hymn of praise.
- the opening hymn
- The opening hymn was familiar to everyone.
- a hymn book
- She opened the hymn book to find the right page.
Synonyms and how they differ
- anthem
- An anthem is a formal or national song; a hymn is specifically religious and usually sung in worship.
- psalm
- A psalm is a sacred song or poem from the Bible; a hymn is any song of praise, not necessarily biblical.
- carol
- A carol is a joyful song, especially at Christmas; a hymn is more general and used year-round.
Word family
- hymnal noun
- A book of hymns.
- hymnody noun
- The singing or writing of hymns.
- hymnist noun
- A person who writes hymns.
Commonly confused: hymn or him? hymn or her?
hymn vs him
Hymn is pronounced like 'him' but has a silent 'n' in spelling. 'Him' is a pronoun.
hymn vs her
Not related; 'her' is a pronoun, while 'hymn' is a noun.
Practice
The congregation sang a ______ of praise during the service.
Choose one answer.
A hymn is a song of praise. 'Him' is a pronoun, 'hymnal' is a book of hymns, and 'hymnody' is the practice of singing hymns, so none fits the sentence.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hymn”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.