Empyrean

//ɛmˌpaɪˈɹiːn̩// adj, noun

adj, noun ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The highest heaven, supposed by the ancients to be a region of pure light and fire or else composed of ether, and sometimes seen as the dwelling-place of God or other divine beings; the highest celestial sphere according to ancient and medieval astronomy. historical

    "So ſung they, and the Empyrean rung, With Halleluiahs: […]"

  2. 2
    the apparent surface of the imaginary sphere on which celestial bodies appear to be projected wordnet
Adjective
  1. 1
    Of the sky or the heavens, and particularly relating to the highest celestial sphere in premodern cosmology; celestially refined. not-comparable

    "In th' Empyrean Heaven, (the bleſs'd Abode) / The Thrones and the Dominions proſtrate lie, / Not daring to behold their angry God: / And an huſh'd ſilence damps the tuneful sky."

Adjective
  1. 1
    inspiring awe wordnet
  2. 2
    of or relating to the sky or heavens wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
empyrealairastralastronomicastronomicalastrophysical

Example

More examples

"In the nocturnal firmament, the moon glides, an argent vessel traversing the empyrean expanse, its silvery curvature a luminous arc across the celestial canvas."

Etymology

From Latin empȳreus, from Ancient Greek ἐμπύριος (empúrios), from ἐν (en, “in”) + πῦρ (pûr, “fire”) (whence English pyre).

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.