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Pentecost

Historical Festival
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Christian feast fifty days after Easter celebrating the Holy Spirit’s descent on the apostles, marking the Church’s birth

Detailed Definition
Pentecost, or Whitsun, recalls tongues of fire and speaking in languages (Acts 2). In poetry, it appears in medieval hymns and modern verse as a moment of divine empowerment. Poets use it to explore themes of inspiration, unity in diversity, and the birth of proclamation—making it a symbol of spiritual awakening, the poet’s own gift of voice, and the fire that ignites community.
Example
Example in poetry:
John Donne’s “Whitsun” sonnets explore Pentecost’s fiery tongues and unity; Poets use Pentecost to explore divine inspiration, language, and community; In modern verse, Pentecost symbolizes unexpected understanding and grace; The feast appears in late spring poetry as spiritual summer; Poets contrast Babel’s confusion with Pentecost’s harmony; Liberation poets reference Pentecost as inclusive empowerment.
Additional Notes
Pentecost (50 days after Easter) commemorates the Holy Spirit’s descent on the apostles; in poetry, it evokes tongues of fire, multilingual unity, and divine inspiration—central to Acts 2 and useful in charismatic, linguistic, or communal verse exploring the birth of the Church and the Spirit as poetic muse.
Other Meanings of “Pentecost”
Also Known As
Whitsunday Feast of Weeks Shavuot (in Jewish tradition) Whitsun
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