Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The most solemn prayer in the Jewish liturgy, also known as the shemonah 'esra (‘eighteen blessings’). It is repeated thrice daily, sotto voce, while standing.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • proper noun Judaism An important daily prayer that is said while standing.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Hebrew תְּפִלַּת־הָעֲמִידָה (t'filát ha'amidá, "the standing prayer").

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Examples

  • The Spanish language even has a verb, sabadear, which refers to praying on the Sabbath, for the unknowing Christian assumed that the swaying motion of the Jew during the Amidah was a special part of the Sabbath prayer.

    Conversas. 2009

  • A 19th prayer, V’lamalshinim, was added to the Shmone Esrei lit. 18, aka Amidah that prays for the demise of such folk.

    Neturei Karta Hasidim Hangin’ With Ahmadinejad | Jewschool 2006

  • "The main prayer in our liturgy, the Shimon Esra, the eighteen blessings, that is part of every service, is also called the Amidah, the Standing, because we always stand to say it.

    Wednesday the Rabbi Got Wet Kemelman, Harry 1976

  • The rabbis taught that the ideal way to achieve kavanah -- focus -- in prayer is to first say the shema and its blessings and then, immediately afterwards, to say the Amidah -- literally the "standing prayer."

    Rabbi Aaron Alexander: Praying On Planes: Rights And Responsabilities Rabbi Aaron Alexander 2011

  • The rabbis taught that the ideal way to achieve kavanah -- focus -- in prayer is to first say the shema and its blessings and then, immediately afterwards, to say the Amidah -- literally the "standing prayer."

    Rabbi Aaron Alexander: Praying On Planes: Rights And Responsabilities Rabbi Aaron Alexander 2011

  • The holiest prayer in the Jewish prayer book is the Amidah -- the "standing" prayer -- in which we are in soul connection to God, so that we can praise our Creator for the beauty and bounty of the world, ask for peace, health and understanding and express gratitude for our lives.

    Rabbi Alan Lurie: The Allure Of Narcissistic Spirituality Rabbi Alan Lurie 2011

  • The holiest prayer in the Jewish prayer book is the Amidah -- the "standing" prayer -- in which we are in soul connection to God, so that we can praise our Creator for the beauty and bounty of the world, ask for peace, health and understanding and express gratitude for our lives.

    Rabbi Alan Lurie: The Allure Of Narcissistic Spirituality Rabbi Alan Lurie 2011

  • No wonder in the liturgy after reciting the Amidah's birkot bakasha, blessings in which we overflow with request and need, that we immediately recite the birkot hoda'ah, the blessings of thanksgiving.

    Rabbi Avi Weiss: Offering Thanks: Reflections On 25 Years Of A Gift of Life Rabbi Avi Weiss 2011

  • The holiest prayer in the Jewish prayer book is the Amidah -- the "standing" prayer -- in which we are in soul connection to God, so that we can praise our Creator for the beauty and bounty of the world, ask for peace, health and understanding and express gratitude for our lives.

    Rabbi Alan Lurie: The Allure Of Narcissistic Spirituality Rabbi Alan Lurie 2011

  • The holiest prayer in the Jewish prayer book is the Amidah -- the "standing" prayer -- in which we are in soul connection to God, so that we can praise our Creator for the beauty and bounty of the world, ask for peace, health and understanding and express gratitude for our lives.

    Rabbi Alan Lurie: The Allure Of Narcissistic Spirituality Rabbi Alan Lurie 2011

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