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anoint

[uh-noint] / əˈnɔɪnt /
VERB
bless, usually with oil or water
Synonyms


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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There is this idea that through market-controlling systems like the draft and the salary cap, any team, no matter how minor or shabby, may stumble into a transcendent talent and anoint a dynasty.

From Slate ● Aug. 28, 2026

It was impossible to separate the photo with a by-election winner from the gathering to anoint a new leader which this also seemed to become, especially considering some of the MPs present.

From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026

Look at the way we anoint actors, pop stars, politicians.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 18, 2026

The third-placed Pheu Thai party of jailed former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra agreed to join him in a coalition, alongside several smaller parties, and parliament will anoint him on Thursday.

From Barron's ● Mar. 18, 2026

“A stone of no great size which the priests of Delphi anoint every day with oil.”

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

But, like Tarantino, he anoints a marvelous leading lady as his Pam Grier.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

Each year TED anoints a small cohort—scientists, artists, activists, and entrepreneurs—as TED Fellows, giving them visibility, coaching, and introductions to potential funders.

From Slate ● May 8, 2026

Overlooking David’s many strapping older brothers, the wise elder anoints the astonished kid as the next king, but cautions him that the ceremony must be kept secret.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 18, 2025

A: When he anoints himself the story's hero.

From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2022

When he anoints Dain’s other side, he paints it in thick swaths of pollen, yellow as butter.

From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black

According to Licence, this interpretation could help resolve a longstanding historical puzzle: why would a pope support the violent removal of an anointed king?

From Science Daily ● Aug. 11, 2026

Thatcher, his latest anointed icon, fares no better than a butterfly pinned to his mood board.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026

In the course of a whirlwind four weeks, every wing of the parliamentary Labour Party has anointed him as the only person able to reverse their electoral predicament.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

The current Super Bowl favorites anointed Alabama passer Ty Simpson as their quarterback of the future—even if he’s unlikely to make any difference to their present.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026

Maidservants gave them baths, anointed them, held out fresh tunics, cloaked them warm; and soon they took tall thrones beside the son of Atreus.

From "The Odyssey" by Homer

In that sense, it appeared more like an anointing than a procedural formality: the veteran of the American left passing the baton to a younger standard-bearer.

From Slate ● Jan. 3, 2026

Malcolm X is at the heart of it all, his image anointing the walls and a photograph of his former home, boarded up with a sign advertising its rehabilitation, presented without comment.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2025

He was anointing them, he said, to become poll workers.

From Slate ● Sep. 25, 2024

In the Coronation service last year, the oil used for anointing the King was animal free for the first time.

From BBC ● May 14, 2024

But in his own field of endeavor, which he was now practicing, the slow, imperial smelling over and anointing of an area, he has no peer.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck


Vocabulary lists containing anoint

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