rapture.

1. An intense state of delight, joy, or absorbed emotional ecstasy.

2. In some Christian teachings, the event in which believers are taken to be with Christ.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• in rapture
• raptures of delight

On the page

She listened in rapture as the first clear notes filled the hall.

The reunion brought a moment of rapture neither had expected.

Usage notes

Primary category: literary. Forms: Usually uncountable; plural raptures in expressions or for distinct episodes. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.