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passion definition

pas·sion (pas̸h′ən)

noun

    1. Archaic suffering or agony, as of a martyr
    2. Now Rare an account of this
    1. the sufferings of Jesus, beginning with his agony in the garden of Gethsemane and continuing to his death on the Cross
    2. any of the Gospel narratives of Jesus' Passion and of accompanying events
    3. an artistic work, as an oratorio or a play, based on these narratives
    1. any one of the emotions, as hate, grief, love, fear, joy, etc.
    2. all such emotions collectively
  4. extreme, compelling emotion; intense emotional drive or excitement; specif.,
    1. great anger; rage; fury
    2. enthusiasm or fondness a passion for music
    3. strong love or affection
    4. sexual drive or desire; lust
  5. the object of any strong desire or fondness
  6. Obsolete the condition of being acted upon, esp. by outside influences

Etymology: OFr < LL(Ec) passio, a suffering, esp. that of Christ (< L passus, pp. of pati, to endure < IE base *pē-, to harm > Gr pēma, destruction, L paene, scarcely): transl. of Gr pathos: see pathos

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

law passion definition - legal

passion Synonyms

passion

n.

  1. Sexual desire

    lust, craving, appetite, amorousness, concupiscence, sexual excitement; see also desire 3.

  2. Strong emotion

    emotion, feeling, ardor, outburst, intensity; see also anger, emotion, enthusiasm 1, love 1. See syn. study at enthusiasm, feeling.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

passion Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • arouse: Who would have thought Cranford would have aroused such passions?

Adjective modifier

  • abiding: Here we meet the essential Richard Dawkins: inspirational in both his unswerving attention to rationalism and his abiding passions.

Modifies a noun

  • fruit: They are a good partner for lightly fried bananas and passion fruit.

Noun used with modifier

  • consuming: People are compelled to the meeting of needs and it's a consuming passion and they never get their needs met.

Preposition: of

  • mine: This is just of a personal passion of mine.

Preposition: for

  • gardening: Gardening With Kids Help children develop a lifetime passion for gardening by starting them young.
passion usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

passion quotes

Eternal Passion! Eternal Pain!

-Arnold, Matthew

Culture is the passion for sweetness and light, and (what is more) the passion for making them prevail.

-Arnold, Matthew

There is no passion in the mind of man so weak, but it mates and mastersthefearofdeath. And therefore death is no such terrible enemy, when a man hath so many attendants about him that can win the combat of him. Revenge triumphs over death; love slights it; honour aspireth to it; grief flieth to it.

-Bacon, Francis,Viscount St Albans

passion quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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"passion." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/passion>

APA Style

passion. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/passion

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