Anthem
noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Definitions
- 1 Antiphon. archaic
- 2 a song of praise (to God or to a saint or to a nation) wordnet
- 3 A choral or vocal composition, often with a religious or political lyric.
"The school's anthem sang of its many outstanding qualities, and it was hard to keep a straight face while singing."
- 4 a song of devotion or loyalty (as to a nation or school) wordnet
- 5 A hymn of praise or loyalty.
"The choir sang a selection of Christmas anthems at the service just before the big day."
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- 6 A very popular song or track. informal
"In May 2000, they even finally cracked the UK top ten when they teamed up with Paul Van Dyk on the trance anthem "The Riddle"..."
- 1 To celebrate with anthems. poetic, transitive
"[T]hou shalt hear / Distant harvest-carols clear; / Rustle of the reaped corn; / Sweet birds antheming the morn: [...]"
Example
More examples"The concert concluded with the national anthem."
Etymology
From Middle English anteme, from Old English antefn, antefen and Old French antiene, anteine, anteivne, from Latin antiphōna, from Ancient Greek ἀντίφωνα (antíphōna), from ἀντί (antí, “over against”) + φωνή (phōnḗ, “voice, sound”). Doublet of antiphon.
Related phrases
More for "anthem"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.