Par"a*dise (?), v. t. To affect or exalt with visions of felicity; to entrance; to bewitch. [R.]
Marston.
Par"a*dise (?), n. [OE.
& F. paradis, L.
paradisus, fr. Gr. para`deisos park, paradise, fr. Zend pairidaēza an inclosure; pairi around (akin to Gr. &?;) + diz to throw up, pile up; cf. Skr. dih to smear, and
E. dough. Cf. Parvis.]
1. The garden of
Eden, in which Adam and Eve were
placed after their creation.
2. The abode of
sanctified souls after
death.
To-day shalt
thou be with me in paradise.
Luke xxiii. 43. It sounds to him
like her mother's voice,
Singing in Paradise.
Longfellow. 3. A place of bliss; a region of supreme felicity or delight; hence, a state of happiness.
The earth
Shall be all
paradise.
Milton.
Wrapt in the very paradise of some creative vision.
Beaconsfield.
4. (Arch.) An open space
within a monastery or adjoining a church, as the space within a cloister, the open court before a basilica, etc.
5.
A churchyard or cemetery. [Obs.]
Oxf. Gloss.
Fool's paradise. See under Fool, and Limbo. -- Grains of paradise. (Bot.)
See Melequeta pepper, under Pepper. -- Paradise bird.
(Zoöl.) Same as Bird of paradise. Among the most beautiful species are the superb (Lophorina superba); the magnificent
(Diphyllodes magnifica); and the six-shafted paradise bird (Parotia sefilata). The
long-billed paradise birds (Epimachinæ) also include some highly ornamental species, as the twelve-wired paradise bird (Seleucides
alba), which is black, yellow, and white, with six long
breast feathers on each side, ending in long, slender filaments. See Bird of
paradise in the Vocabulary. -- Paradise fish
(Zoöl.), a beautiful fresh-water Asiatic fish (Macropodus viridiauratus) having very large fins. It is often kept
alive as an
ornamental fish. --
Paradise flycatcher (Zoöl.), any flycatcher of the genus Terpsiphone, having the middle tail feathers extremely elongated. The adult male of
T. paradisi is white, with the head glossy dark green, and crested. -- Paradise grackle
(Zoöl.), a very beautiful bird of New Guinea, of the genus Astrapia, having dark velvety plumage with brilliant metallic tints. -- Paradise nut (Bot.), the sapucaia nut. See Sapucaia nut. [Local, U. S.] -- Paradise whidah bird.
(Zoöl.) See
Whidah.
Hear it pronounced