hide one's light under a bushel
Syllables: hide one's light un·der a bush·elUK/ˌhaɪd wʌnz ˈlaɪt ˌʌndɚ‿ə ˈbʊʃl̩/US/ˌhaɪd wʌnz ˈlaɪt ˌʌndɚ‿ə ˈbʊʃ(ə)l/
hide one's light under a bushel verb: to conceal one's positive qualities or talents, especially due to modesty or shyness; to avoid attention.
Verb
hide one's light under a bushel (third-person singular simple present hides one's light under a bushel, present participle hiding one's light under a bushel, simple past hid one's light under a bushel, past participle hidden one's light under a bushel)
- To conceal one's positive qualities or talents, especially due to modesty or shyness; to avoid attention.
- O then doe not knit vp your Maſters talent in a Napkin; ſmother not his light vnder a buſhell; […] but aboue all, ſquander not avvay your rich portions by riotous living.[1624 March 23 (date delivered; Gregorian calendar), Robert Saunderson [i.e., Robert Sanderson], “[Ad Clerum.] The Third Sermon. At a Visitation at Boston Lincoln[shire] 13. March. 1624.”, in Twelve...
- VVhen after all, a Man is fully convinced of Truth, and believes it in his Heart; yet, for Fear of Man, he hides this Light under a Bushel, by not confeſſing it before Men.[1731, Augustus Hermannus Franke [i.e., August Hermann Francke], “Of the Signs and Effects which Discover the Fear of Man”, in [Anton Wilhelm Böhme], transl., Nicodemus: Or, A Treatise against the...
Forms of hide one's light under a bushel
| third-person singular present | hides one's light under a bushel |
|---|---|
| present participle | hiding one's light under a bushel |
| past | hid one's light under a bushel |
| past participle | hidden one's light under a bushel |
Origin of hide one's light under a bushel
Originally a reference to one of Jesus Christ’s parables recorded in Matthew 5:14–15, Mark 4:21–25, and Luke 8:16–18 of the Bible. For example, in the King James Version the passage from Matthew states (spelling modernized): “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill, cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel: but on a candlestick, and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your father which is in heaven.” The parable uses the imagery of a candle hidden under an overturned bushel (“a dry-measure vessel with a capacity of eight gallons”), and is interpreted as a call to Christians to set a good example through their actions that other people may come to believe in the faith.
Words that rhyme with hide one's light under a bushel
Questions about hide one's light under a bushel
- What does hide one's light under a bushel mean?
- Hide one's light under a bushel means to conceal one's positive qualities or talents, especially due to modesty or shyness; to avoid attention.
- What part of speech is hide one's light under a bushel?
- Hide one's light under a bushel is a verb.
- How do you pronounce hide one's light under a bushel?
- Hide one's light under a bushel is pronounced /ˌhaɪd wʌnz ˈlaɪt ˌʌndɚ‿ə ˈbʊʃl̩/ (UK).
- What is the past tense of hide one's light under a bushel?
- The past tense of hide one's light under a bushel is hid one's light under a bushel.
Words near hide one's light under a bushel in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: hide one's light under a bushel (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-hide one's light under a bushel.ogg.
Cite this entry: “hide one's light under a bushel.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/hide_one%27s_light_under_a_bushel. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.