homily

noun

hom·​i·​ly ˈhä-mə-lē 

plural homilies

1

: a usually short sermon

a priest delivering his homily

2

: a lecture or discourse on or of a moral theme

3

: an inspirational catchphrase

also : platitude

Did you know?

Homily Has Greek Roots

Gather round for a succinct history of homily. The story starts with the ancient Greek word homilos, meaning "crowd" or "assembly," and travels through related Greek words homilein, "to address," and homilia, "conversation, discourse." Homilia eventually takes on the "usually short sermon" meaning in our modern homily, and then is incorporated into the Latin used by writers of the early first millennium. It reaches English speakers of the 14th century by way of Anglo-French, but when it arrives it's spelled omelie. By the mid-16th century the "h" is back, and the "y" of the modern spelling has found its place. A side note to our tale is this: be careful not to confuse homily with hominy, a 17th century word of Virginia Algonquian origin denoting a key ingredient in the Mexican soup posole (which, if we may be so corny, is a dish worth preaching about).

Synonyms

• sermon

Examples of homily in a Sentence

The priest gave a brief homily on forgiveness.

We had to listen to another one of his homilies about the value of public service.

a politician with a fondness for homily

Recent Examples on the Web

When lodging is granted, festivities ensue with prayers, scripture readings and a brief homily about Jesus’ birth. —Kamren Curiel, Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2024

Of course there is, although thankfully there’s not too much heavy-handedness to the script’s inherent homilies about fake news and American authoritarianism not just being a byproduct of the 1930s. —Chris Willman, Variety, 16 June 2024

Last week, the pontiff skipped his homily during Palm Sunday Mass. —Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2024

Archbishop of Baltimore William Lori gave a homily before Walker introduced the six minutes of silence. —Dillon Mullan, Baltimore Sun, 9 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English omelie, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin homilia, from Late Greek, from Greek, conversation, discourse, from homilein to consort with, address, from homilos crowd, assembly; akin to Greek homos same — more at same

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

homily

noun

hom·​i·​ly ˈhäm-ə-lē 

plural homilies

: sermon sense 1