Joseph

One whose chastity is above temptation.

Proper noun

  1. Eleventh and favorite son of Jacob, by his wife Rachel.
    • Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours. - 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC,...
    • A few shocks of corn in a corner of the fallow stood up as if alive; she imagined them bowing; perhaps her son would be a Joseph. - 1913, D[avid] H[erbert] Lawrence, chapter 2, in Sons and Lovers, London: Duckworth &...
  2. The husband of Mary, mother of Jesus.
    • Meronym: Holy Family
    • And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli. - 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC,...

    Synonyms: Saint Joseph

  3. The 12th sura (chapter) of the Qur'an.
  4. Joseph of Arimathea; man who donated his own prepared tomb for the burial of Jesus.
  5. A male given name from Hebrew.
    • I'm going to call him Joseph / or Josephine if it's a girl. / Why? / Because it's a strong name, / Joe, Joseph. / You give a kid a name like Cameron / or Alfred, or something like that, / and they end up wearing glasses...
    • Army chief Joseph Aoun was voted president after two rounds of voting. - 2025 January 9, Tamara Qiblawi, “US-backed army chief elected Lebanon’s president, ending years-long stalemate”, in CNN:
  6. A surname:

    1. An English surname originating as a patronymic.

    2. A French surname originating as a patronymic.

  7. A locale in the United States:

    1. A city in Wallowa County, Oregon; named for Nez Perce chief Hinmatóowyalahtq̓it (called "Chief Joseph" in English).

    2. A town in Sevier County, Utah; named for Mormon apostle Joseph Angell Young.

    3. A ghost town in Idaho County, Idaho; named for Hinmatóowyalahtq̓it (Chief Joseph).

Origin

From Middle English Ioseph, ultimately from Biblical Hebrew יוֹסֵף (Yoséf, literally “(God) shall add”); a son of Jacob. Doublet of Yusuf. Noun sense 1 (“one whose chastity is above temptation”) is a reference to the story of Joseph and Potiphar's wife in Genesis 39.

Forms

Josephs Jos.

Related

Joe Joey Jo Josephine Josephs Josephson Jos.

Derived

Jesus, Mary and Joseph Jo Joe Joey Jos. Jos Joseph-and-Mary Joseph City Josephs Josephson Mary-and-Joseph St. Joseph St Joseph Saint Joseph

Noun

  1. One whose chastity is above temptation.
    • And my lady thought you a Joseph! - 1925, Stanley John Weyman, “XXVII The Return”, in Queen's Folly:
    • You're a kid Casanova, you're no Joseph It's a labor of love fucking yourself to death Orgasm addict, you're an orgasm addict - 1977, Buzzcocks, Orgasm Addict:
  2. A coat or other garment of many colours.
    • When summoned to lecture on the following day, he made his appearance in a morning-coat which had been originally of tartan plaid, but sundry repairs of various patterns gave it at once the name of his "Joseph". - 1899,...
    • Charles Dickens, quoted in 1974, Madeline House & Graham Storey (eds.), Letters […] their Josephs again — their coats of many colors.
    • […] his Joseph attire of many colours, and ill-matching socks. - 1986, New Society, volumes 75-76, page 14:

Forms

Josephs Jos.