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Good tidings we bring to you and your kin, goes a line from the popular 16th-century carol "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." Another carol, "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" (1833), speaks of "tidings of comfort and joy." Although there is nothing inherent in the meaning or origin of "tiding" that specifically pertains to Christmas (it derives via Middle English from Old English and relates to betide, meaning "to happen especially by fate"), we most often see the word in contexts pertaining to the Christmas season. The most notable usage, perhaps, occurs in Luke 2:10 of the King James Bible, when the angel delivers the news of the arrival of the Savior: "Fear not: for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people."
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Examples of tiding in a Sentence
Wes Moss, Forbes, 29 Oct. 2024
For anyone aching to start the holiday season early, Clay Aiken is here to deliver tidings of comfort and joy.
—Stephen Daw, Billboard, 16 Oct. 2024
In water quality tidings: Honeywell International Inc. — whose predecessors polluted the San Fernando Valley aquifer — has agreed to pay for groundwater cleanup.
—Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2024
The ill tidings for Republicans: The Harris ticket has been well ahead ever since the Harris-Trump debate three week ago, and bettors are displaying a low tendency to change their minds.
—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 3 Oct. 2024
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Dictionary Entries Near tiding
Cite this Entry
“Tiding.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tiding. Accessed 24 Nov. 2024.
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