as in hymn
a religious song
the monks offered up a canticle at dawn on Easter morning
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Recent Examples of canticle
Gustave Doré, the celebrated French illustrator, did elaborate engravings for the three canticles in the mid-19th century and devoted 99 out of 135 of them to Dante Alighieri’s darkest scenes.
—
Eric Bulson, The Atlantic, 2 Jan. 2026
That’s the opening line of Slipknot’s rage-rot canticle.
—Spin Contributor, SPIN, 12 Feb. 2025
The leaders of this communal canticle were the women of Boygenius — Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus.
—Stephen Daw, Billboard, 3 Oct. 2023
The first was Bach’s glorious 12-part canticle, premiered in 1723 as the conclusion of the Christmas Vespers in Leipzig as a sort of meet-your-new-cantor demonstration of his powers.
—Washington Post, 17 Dec. 2021
For many students of Dante, Purgatory is the Divine Comedy’s central canticle poetically, philosophically, and psychologically.
—Judith Thurman, The New Yorker, 13 Sep. 2021
Eric Bulson, The Atlantic, 2 Jan. 2026
That’s the opening line of Slipknot’s rage-rot canticle.
—Spin Contributor, SPIN, 12 Feb. 2025
The leaders of this communal canticle were the women of Boygenius — Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus.
—Stephen Daw, Billboard, 3 Oct. 2023
The first was Bach’s glorious 12-part canticle, premiered in 1723 as the conclusion of the Christmas Vespers in Leipzig as a sort of meet-your-new-cantor demonstration of his powers.
—Washington Post, 17 Dec. 2021
For many students of Dante, Purgatory is the Divine Comedy’s central canticle poetically, philosophically, and psychologically.
—Judith Thurman, The New Yorker, 13 Sep. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for canticle
Noun
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It was written by James Weldon Johnson, who considered the piece a hymn.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Carlile put her emphatic phrasing into the patriotic hymn, elongating notes and smiling at herself after a slight vocal squeak at the end.—
Melissa Ruggieri,
USA Today,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The songs, by the female rock duo ARXX, make cathartic anthems of these grievances.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
5 Feb. 2026
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Russian skiers and lugers at the Games won’t be displaying a national identity with team colors, a flag or an anthem and will not be part of the two-and-a-half-hour opening ceremony.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Like a typical Catholic Mass, scriptures, psalms and gospels will be read and the Holy Communion will be given.—
Alexa Herrera,
CBS News,
5 Feb. 2026
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Each song presents a lyrical tapestry that carries messages from God, frequently drawing upon references to biblical psalms.—
Ingrid Fajardo,
Billboard,
26 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Canticle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/canticle. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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