Christmas
Part of speech: adj
verb
intj
Morphological type: derivation
Topics: cooking
food
lifestyle
Etymology: The proper noun is derived from Middle English Cristemasse, Criste-mas (“Christmas Day; season of Christmas; Christmas festivities”) [and other forms], from Old English Cristes mæsse (“Christmas”, literally “Christ’s mass”), from Crist (“Christ”) + -es (possessive marker) + mæsse (“a mass (celebration of the Eucharist)”). The English word is analysable as Christ + -mas (suffix denoting a holiday or sacred day). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Kristmisse (“Christmas”), West Frisian Krystmis (“Christmas”), Dutch Kerstmis (“Christmas”), German Low German Karstmis (“Christmas”).
The noun, adjective, and verb are derived from the proper noun.
Adjective etymology 1, adjective sense 1 (“red and green in color”) refers to these colors being traditionally associated with Christmas.
Base: Christ
Affixes: -mas
Inflected forms:
form: Christmases
pos: verb
tags: present
singular
third-person
form: Christmasses
pos: verb
tags: present
singular
third-person
form: Christmasing
pos: verb
tags: participle
present
form: Christmassing
pos: verb
tags: participle
present
form: Christmased
pos: verb
tags: participle
past
form: Christmased
pos: verb
tags: past
form: Christmassed
pos: verb
tags: participle
past
form: Christmassed
pos: verb
tags: past
form: Xmas
pos: verb
tags: alternative
Senses:
gloss: Red and green in color.
pos: adj
tags: US
also
attributive
not-comparable
gloss: Of a dish: having a sauce made with red (ripe) and green (unripe) chili peppers.
pos: adj
tags: US
also
attributive
not-comparable
gloss: To decorate (a place) with Christmas (“sprigs of holly and other evergreen plants used as Christmas decorations, or any Christmas decorations”).
pos: verb
tags: US
also
attributive
informal
transitive
examples: "Then look," said a gardener to me, "what's spent on a Christmasing the churches! Why, now, properly to Christmas St. Paul's, I say properly, mind, would take 50l. worth at least; aye, more, when I think of it, nearer 100l. I hope there'll be no 'No Popery' nonsense against Christmasing this year. I'm always sorry when anything of that kind's afloat, because it's frequently a hindrance to business."
(Moving to the holly boughs.) Come on; let's finish Christmassing the place.
Haddonfield was completely Christmased deep in December. It was lovely to see the beautifully decorated shops. Huge bows adorned the streetlamps, aerosol snow framed the windows, and people bundled up were moving in and out of the shops as the aroma of spice and clove from holiday candles scented the air.
gloss: To bring (someone) Christmas cheer.
pos: verb
tags: US
also
attributive
obsolete
rare
transitive
examples: Her labours feast imperial Night with sports, / Where loves are Christmass'd, with all pleasure's sorts; […]
gloss: To celebrate Christmas.
pos: verb
tags: US
also
attributive
intransitive
examples: The 2016 campaign via TBWA Sydney asks the question, ‘How do Australians Christmas?’ with a film to be launched today featuring global superstar and style icon, Cate Blanchett.
gloss: To spend Christmas or the Christmas season in some place.
pos: verb
tags: US
also
attributive
intransitive
examples: I've Christmased since those palmy days / In many a varied spot, / And suffered many a weary phase / Of Christmas cold and hot.
I have spent Christmas on the Severn, at Sharpness Point; in Paris, under siege, and among scenes of heartrending distress; among the Scotch hills, with Presbyterian severity, and I have Christmased in Normandy, where every tree seems green with mistletoe.
Prince Albert Victor on arrival in India will land at Bombay, and travel through Southern India, proceeding from Madras by sea to Calcutta. He will Christmas at Calcutta, and then make a tour through Bengal, and pay a visit to the frontier.
Mr. Danby never omitted his annual visits to Penlyon Place. He Christmassed there, and he Eastered there, and he knew the owner of the fine old Tudor house inside and out, his vices and his virtues, his weaknesses, and his prejudices.
André Maurois will be one of the spearheads of the Harold R[eginald] Peat list for the coming season, a result of Mr. Peat’s holiday visit to England, where he Christmassed with H[erbert] G[eorge] Wells.
Christmasing in Khartoum, writing in his Cairo study about the Al Azhar University, overseeing the publication of learned articles about Moslem medievalism, attending conferences and tea parties hosted by his former AUB students, feted constantly in many an Arab capital, and filling up his diary with descriptions of the bazaars of Lucknow and the exotic birds of Asia, [Bayard] Dodge was reaping the bounty of a life devoted to the Arabs and Moslem culture.
In particular, please keep my brother in your prayers as he Christmases in Afghanistan.
gloss: To subject to Christmas celebrations.
pos: verb
tags: US
also
attributive
colloquial
examples: “[…] But there’s only so much joyful, greedy delight you can see in a young child’s eyes before you want to go screaming out for the nearest bar.” He tossed his handstitched, kidskin gloves onto the table top. “I’m about Christmassed-out, if you want to know.”
"The kids claim they are all Christmassed-out and have disappeared in protest."
I had done Christmas in so many ways that I was somewhat ‘Christmassed-out.
That evening, after the family, Christmased out, went early to bed, Herman brought out his unmailed letters.
Christmas muzak was pumping out, presumably to get her into the spirit of the thing. Not much chance of that, when she had felt all Christmassed out for months. Bugger off, she felt like shouting as a particularly cheesy version of ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’ blared out. Look at all these people. Do any of them look bloody merry?
I notice that this is one of the very few buildings in town that hasn’t any Christmas decorations whatsoever. / “We’re a respite from Christmas, I guess,” Suze explains. “Our kids are all Christmassed out.”
gloss: An expression of annoyance or surprise: Christ, Jesus Christ, Jiminy Cricket, Jiminy Crickets.
pos: intj
tags: US
also
attributive
euphemistic
examples: "Christmas! I didn't know it," said Harvey, turning round. "I'll give you a dollar for it when I—get my wages. Say, I'll give you two dollars."
"I've been tottering on the edge … Christmas!" His eyes brightened with a sudden thought. "How stupid I've been!" he cried at once.
She said, "All right with you, Bertie?" / "Oh Christmas! he said. "I suppose so."
Translations: