Feast \Feast\ (f[=e]st), n. [OE. feste festival, holiday, feast,
OF. feste festival, F. f[^e]te, fr. L. festum, pl. festa, fr.
festus joyful, festal; of uncertain origin. Cf. Fair, n.,
Festal, F[^e]te.]
1. A festival; a holiday; a solemn, or more commonly, a
joyous, anniversary.
The seventh day shall be a feast to the Lord. --Ex.
xiii. 6.
Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the
feast of the passover. --Luke ii. 41.
Note: Ecclesiastical fasts are called immovable when they
always occur on the same day of the year; otherwise
they are called movable.
2. A festive or joyous meal; a grand, ceremonious, or
sumptuous entertainment, of which many guests partake; a
banquet characterized by tempting variety and abundance of
food.
Enough is as good as a feast. --Old Proverb.
Belshazzar the King made a great feast to a thousand
of his lords. --Dan. v. 1.
3. That which is partaken of, or shared in, with delight;
something highly agreeable; entertainment.
The feast of reason, and the flow of soul. --Pope.
Feast day, a holiday; a day set as a solemn commemo?ative
festival.
Syn: Entertainment; regale; banquet; treat; carousal;
festivity; festival.
Usage: Feast, Banquet, Festival, Carousal. A feast
sets before us viands superior in quantity, variety,
and abudance; a banquet is a luxurious feast; a
festival is the joyful celebration by good cheer of
some agreeable event. Carousal is unrestrained
indulgence in frolic and drink.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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