burnt offering

burnt of·fer·ing
UK/bɜːnt ˈɒfəɹɪŋ/US/bɝnt ˈɔfəɹɪŋ/US/-ˈɑfəɹɪŋ/

noun

A slaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin.

OriginMiddle English brend offring →
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Meanings

nounburnt offering (plural burnt offerings)

plural burnt offerings

  1. biblicalA slaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin.

    […] Job ſent for them, and clenſed them agayne, ſtode vp early, and offred for eueryone a brẽtofferinge [brentofferinge].

    1535 October 14 (Gregorian calendar), Myles Coverdale, transl., Biblia: The Byble, […] (Coverdale Bible), [Cologne or Marburg]: [Eucharius Cervicornus and Johannes Soter?], →OCLC, Job j:[5], folio i, recto, column 2
    1 more example

    When they faſt I will not heare their crie, and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation I wil not accept them: but I will conſume them by the ſword, and by the famine, and by the peſtilence.

    1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Jeremiah 14:12, column 2
  2. broadlylifestyleAny similar sacrifice to a deity or deities, or to a deceased person.
  3. humorousOvercooked food that is nevertheless served.

    A cooler oven would give heavy, doughy loaves while a hotter oven would provide the family with the inevitable burnt offerings.

    1991, Sara Minwel Tibbott, Baking in Wales, page 21

Origin

  1. Middle Englishbrend offring
  2. Englishburnt offering

PIE word *h₁epi From Middle English brend offring, brend offringe, from brend (past participle of brennen (“to burn”)) + offring, offringe (“presentation of something as a religious offering; offering presented to God or another deity”), used in biblical texts to translate Late Latin holocaustum (“burnt offering wholly consumed by fire”) in the Vulgate version of the Bible. The English term is analysable as burnt + offering.

More words from Middle English

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Ancient Greek ὁλοκαύτωμα, θύος
  • ὁλοκαύτωμα (holokaútōma)slaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
  • θύος (thúos)slaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
Dutch brandoffer
  • brandofferslaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
Finnish polttouhri, polttouhri
  • polttouhrislaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
  • polttouhriany similar sacrifice to a deity or deities, or to an deceased person
  • karrelle palanut ruoka(humorous) overcooked food
Icelandic brennifórn
  • brennifórnslaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
Polish ofiara całopalna, całopalenie
  • ofiara całopalnaslaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
  • całopalenieslaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
  • holocaustslaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
  • holokaustslaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
Russian же́ртва всесожже́ния, о́ла
  • же́ртва всесожже́ния (žértva vsesožžénija)slaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
  • о́ла (óla)slaughtered animal offered and burnt on an altar as an atonement for sin
Cite this entry
APA

burnt offering. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/burnt%20offering

MLA

“burnt offering.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/burnt%20offering. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “burnt offering,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/burnt%20offering.

Source: burnt offering on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.