Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Inclined or given to praying frequently; devout.
  • adjective Typical or indicative of prayer, as a mannerism, gesture, or facial expression.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Praying much; devout.
  • Devotional; given to prayer; occupied with prayer: as, a prayerful spirit.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Given to prayer; praying much or often; devotional.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective disposed to pray or appearing to pray

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From prayer +‎ -ful.

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Examples

  • "It lays a very heavy burden on my heart, quite frankly, to watch what's going on and then to see the lack of leadership and the lack of response of this Congress and this administration, and that's what motivated me to be in what I call prayerful consideration" about running for president, he says.

    Newsmax - Inside Cover 2010

  • Ours was an experience of holy listening as we engaged together in prayerful attentiveness to God and to each other in Christ.

    The Anglican Church of Canada immersed in treacly conversation « Anglican Samizdat 2010

  • It is my prayer that the Kennedy family remain prayerful, faithful and confident in the God's word.

    Kennedy seizure caused by brain tumor 2008

  • On the right Saint John watches in prayerful devotion, while the left-hand space is occupied by a haloed woman, perhaps Mary Magdalen, who likewise joins her hands in prayer.

    Sensual Encounters: Monastic Women and Spirituality in Medieval Germany 2008

  • And our lives must be structured around that kind of prayerful hospitality which today, tomorrow and the day after is willing to be open to those whom God give us to be with and to be for.

    Sermon at the festival of St Albans 2006

  • I clasped my hands in a kind of prayerful desperation, and looked once more at the solemn Shadow beside me.

    The Life Everlasting; a reality of romance Marie Corelli 1889

  • He now considered his marriage with a kind of prayerful wonder.

    The Guardian World News 2009

  • Such knowledge was called contemplation, a kind of prayerful attention.

    futureofthebook.com 2009

  • Anti-abortion supporters are in the midst of 40 Days for Life, what committee member Mary Ann Haas calls a "prayerful" effort.

    Latest Articles 2008

  • “When we have a child, I hope it's a boy and I hope he's old enough so I can show him a lunar eclipse and explain that's God's way of showing men how their mouth should act when a woman willingly opens their galaxy to him, prayerful and slowly widening.”

    No More Stories About The Moon J. Bradley 2011

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