Jeremiah

Meanings

1. 1proper nounproperreligion

   A Hebrew prophet of the seventh and sixth centuries BC who warned that Jerusalem would be destroyed and who is honored in the Bible.

   Grammar: Used without an article: Jeremiah warned the people.

   Patterns

   • the Book of Jeremiah

   Jeremiah warned the people of Jerusalem to change their ways.

   The Book of Jeremiah is one of the longest in the Old Testament.

   Jeremiah is sometimes called the weeping prophet.

2. 2nouncountableold-fashionedliteraryfigurative

   A person who is always gloomy and predicts disaster, usually written with a small letter.

   Grammar: Sometimes written lowercase; it is a dated figure of speech.

   Patterns

   • play the Jeremiah

   Nobody invited him to the planning meeting because he was such a Jeremiah.

   The paper was full of Jeremiahs predicting the end of the industry.

   She refused to be a Jeremiah and kept her hopes high.

Word forms

Common combinations

the Book of Jeremiah

We read from the Book of Jeremiah in class.

prophet Jeremiah

The prophet Jeremiah lived in troubled times.

the weeping prophet

Jeremiah is known as the weeping prophet.

a modern Jeremiah

The columnist was seen as a modern Jeremiah.

Synonyms and how they differ

doomsayer

Doomsayer is the common modern word for someone predicting disaster, while Jeremiah is a literary reference to the prophet.

pessimist

A pessimist simply expects the worst, whereas a Jeremiah loudly warns of coming ruin.

prophet of doom

Prophet of doom is a plain phrase for the same figure and is easier for most readers to understand.

Opposites

Word family

jeremiad noun

a long, mournful complaint or warning of doom

Commonly confused: Jeremiah or Jeremy?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “Jeremiah”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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