Antonyms for souls


Grammar : Noun
Spell : sohl
Phonetic Transcription : soÊŠl


Definition of souls

Origin :
  • "A substantial entity believed to be that in each person which lives, feels, thinks and wills" [Century Dictionary], Old English sawol "spiritual and emotional part of a person, animate existence; life, living being," from Proto-Germanic *saiwalo (cf. Old Saxon seola, Old Norse sala, Old Frisian sele, Middle Dutch siele, Dutch ziel, Old High German seula, German Seele, Gothic saiwala), of uncertain origin.
  • Sometimes said to mean originally "coming from or belonging to the sea," because that was supposed to be the stopping place of the soul before birth or after death [Barnhart]; if so, it would be from Proto-Germanic *saiwaz (see sea). Klein explains this as "from the lake," as a dwelling-place of souls in ancient northern Europe.
  • Meaning "spirit of a deceased person" is attested in Old English from 971. As a synonym for "person, individual, human being" (e.g. every living soul) it dates from early 14c. Soul-searching (n.) is attested from 1871, from the phrase used as a past participle adjective (1610s). Distinguishing soul from spirit is a matter best left to theologians.
  • noun psyche, inspiration, energy
  • noun being
Example sentences :
  • The face of the maid that served him had been no heaven for the souls of dead flowers.
  • Extract from : « The Spenders » by Harry Leon Wilson
  • I see; there must a lot of them have died here, but their souls didn't go far, did they now?
  • Extract from : « The Spenders » by Harry Leon Wilson
  • When souls have loved, there is no falsehood or forgetfulness.
  • Extract from : « Other Tales and Sketches » by Nathaniel Hawthorne
  • It is tragic how few people ever ‘possess their souls’ before they die.
  • Extract from : « De Profundis » by Oscar Wilde
  • Receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.
  • Extract from : « An Explanation of Luther's Small Catechism » by Joseph Stump
  • Only thus can we keep our souls saved, and only thus also can we follow the flashes from above.
  • Extract from : « Understanding the Scriptures » by Francis McConnell
  • On the part of both there is an out-going of souls in this direction that may be said to be peculiar to Ireland.
  • Extract from : « Ridgeway » by Scian Dubh
  • These were all that were ever saved from the two schooners, which must have had near a hundred souls on board them.
  • Extract from : « Ned Myers » by James Fenimore Cooper
  • In the beginning of the century Roubaix numbered 8000 souls only.
  • Extract from : « In the Heart of Vosges » by Matilda Betham-Edwards
  • She was a small, but a fast schooner, and had about forty souls on board.
  • Extract from : « Ned Myers » by James Fenimore Cooper

Synonyms for souls

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019