BENEDIC'TION, noun [Latin benedictio, from bene, well, and dictio, speaking. See Boon and Diction.] 1. The act of blessing; a giving praise to God or rendering thanks for his favors; a blessing pronounced; hence grace before and after meals. 2. Blessing, prayer, or kind wishes, uttered in favor of any person or thing; a solemn or affectionate invocation of happiness; thanks; expression of gratitude. 3. The advantage conferred by blessing. 4. The form of instituting an abbot, answering to the consecration of a bishop. 5. The external ceremony performed by a priest in the office of matrimony is called the nuptial benediction 6. In the Romish Church, an ecclesiastical ceremony by which a thing is rendered sacred or venerable.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI