Word for Wednesday: Tidings

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Our Word for Wednesday theme for December is words you only hear at Christmas. 

Last week, we looked at the word carol and today’s word is tidings. 

Tidings is another word for news and dates to around 1200. 

The word appears in the song We Wish You A Merry Christmas: 

We wish you a merry Christmas
We wish you a merry Christmas
We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year
Good tidings we bring to you and your kin
We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year

When used in relation to Christmas, the term good tidings refers to the good news about the birth of Christ. The word comes from the Old English word ‘tidan’ meaning ‘to happen’.


14 Dec 2022
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