Good Friday
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
The Friday preceding Easter Day, held as the anniversary of the Crucifixion. "Good" here means holy; Christmas, as well as Shrove Tuesday, used to be called "the good tide.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Good Friday” mean?
The Friday preceding Easter Day, held as the anniversary of the Crucifixion. "Good" here means holy; Christmas, as well as Shrove Tuesday, used to be called "the good tide.
Is “Good Friday” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.