Definition of "heaven"
heaven
noun
countable and uncountable, plural heavens
(dated or poetic, now usually in the plural) The distant sky in which the sun, moon, and stars appear or move; the firmament; the celestial spheres.
Quotations
In ascending orderly vpwardes...The first is the Spheare of the Moone...The seuenth the Spheare of Saturne, The eight the Spheare of the fixed Starres, commonly called the firmament. The ninth is called the second moueable or Christall heauen, The tenth is called the first moueable, and the eleuenth is called the Emperiall heauen, where God and his Angels are said to dwell.
1594, Thomas Blundeville, M. Blundeuile his Exercises, act I scene 3
God framed alſo the Stars and conſtellations; ſome fixed for the Ornament of Heaven and might, very many in number.
1656, Tho[mas] Stanley, “[The Doctrine of Plato Delivered by Alcinous.] Chapter XIV.. Of the Soul of the World, the Sphears and Stars.”, in The History of Philosophy, the Second Volume, volume II, London: […] Humphrey Moseley, and Thomas Dring: […], 5th part (Containing the Academick Philosophers), page 74
(obsolete) The near sky in which weather, flying animals, etc. appear; (obsolete) the atmosphere; the climate.
Quotations
The qualitie of mercie is not ſtraind,it droppeth as the gentle raine from heauenvpon the place beneath
c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, [Act IV, scene i]
(religion) The abode of God or the gods, traditionally conceived as beyond the sky; especially:
(religion, by extension, often capitalized) The abode of the Abrahamic God; similar abodes of the gods in other religions and traditions, such as Mount Olympus.
Quotations
To grasp the Chinese's notion of Heaven, we must look at the contexts in which tian is used... In the Book of Odes (Shi jing 詩經), which includes poems dated between the eleventh and seventh centuries BCE, tian is a place where the Heavenly Thearch resides.
2011, Lillian Tseng, Picturing Heaven in Early China, section 2
(by extension, usually capitalized) Providence, the will of God or the council of the gods; fate.
Quotations
[…] he cannot thriue,Vnlesse her prayers, whom heauen delights to heareAnd loues to grant, repreeue him from the wrathOf greatest Iustice.
c. 1604–1605 (date written), William Shakespeare, “All’s Well, that Ends Well”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, [Act III, scene iv]
(religion) The afterlife of the blessed dead, traditionally conceived as opposed to an afterlife of the wicked and unjust (compare hell); specifically:
Quotations
I wonder what your idea of heaven would be—A beautiful vacuum filled with wealthy monogamists, all powerful and members of the best families drinking themselves to death. And hell would probably be an ugly vacuum full of poor polygamists unable to obtain booze... To me heaven would be a big bull ring with me holding two barrera seats and a trout stream outside that no one else was allowed to fish in and two lovely houses in the town; one where I would have my wife and children and be monogamous and love them truly and well and the other where I would have my nine beautiful mistresses on 9 different floors...
1925 July 1, Ernest Hemingway, letter to F. Scott Fitzgerald
(Christianity, Islam) Paradise, the afterlife of the souls who are not sent to a place of punishment or purification such as hell, purgatory, or limbo; the state or condition of being in the presence of God after death.
Quotations
...what I speakeMy body shall make good vpon this earth,Or my diuine soule answer it in heauen.
1595 December 9 (first known performance), William Shakespeare, “The life and death of King Richard the Second”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, [Act I, scene 1]
(by extension) Any paradise; any blissful place or experience.
Quotations
Ile follow thee and make a heauen of hell.
c. 1595–1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “A Midsommer Nights Dreame”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, [Act II, scene i]
(by extension) A state of bliss; a peaceful ecstasy.
Quotations
She was in heaven — she'd never seen so many stars gathered in one place. She already had her eye on Charlie Dollar. Oh yes, Charlie Dollar might be ancient, but he was still raging hot in a Jack Nicholson kind of way.
2007, Jackie Collins, Drop Dead Beautiful: A Novel, St. Martin's Publishing Group, page 452
verb
third-person singular simple present heavens, present participle heavening, simple past and past participle heavened