Past tense and past participle of 'bless'; also an adjective meaning fortunate, holy, or favored by divine grace.
Old English 'bletsian' developed into Middle English 'blessen', with 'blest' as an alternative past form (alongside 'blessed'). The word originally meant 'to mark with blood' but evolved to mean 'to consecrate' and then 'to make happy'.
English gives us two past tenses for 'bless'—you can say either 'blessed' or 'blest,' but 'blest' sounds more poetic and appears in famous phrases like 'blessed are the meek' versus 'blest are those who...' Writers pick based on rhythm!
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