Soul
nounThe spiritual or immaterial part of a person, often regarded as immortal.
How to spell soul
4 letters · 1 syllable
How to pronounce soul
What does soul mean?
- nounThe spiritual or immaterial part of a person, often regarded as immortal.
- nounA single human being, especially when counted or referred to with feeling.
- nounA style of African American popular music combining gospel and rhythm and blues.
Soul in a sentence
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Philosophers have long debated whether the soul is immortal.
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Not a single soul was waiting at the deserted station.
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The playlist mixed classic soul with modern funk tracks.
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He poured heart and soul into the family business.
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The lifeboat rescued every soul from the sinking ferry.
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She grew up listening to Motown soul on her father's record player.
Where does soul come from?
Language of origin: Germanic
This word descends directly from the Old English sawol, the term Anglo-Saxon speakers used for the immaterial, immortal part of a person believed to live on after death. It belongs to a wider Germanic family, with close relatives in Old Norse sala, Old Saxon seola, and modern German Seele, all carrying the same spiritual sense. The deeper origin is uncertain, but one long-standing suggestion links it to a Germanic word for the sea or lake, reflecting an old belief that souls came from and returned to water; scholars treat this connection with caution. From its earliest religious uses the meaning broadened to cover a person's deepest feelings and character, as in 'heart and soul', and eventually to mean a single individual ('not a soul came'). In the twentieth century it gave its name to soul music, an African American style rich in emotional expression. The spelling keeps the 'ou' that makes it a perfect homophone of 'sole', which is why the two are so easily swapped in writing.
How the word is built
- soul (from Old English sawol: the spiritual or immaterial part of a person)
Words that sound like soul
They sound the same but mean different things, so the meaning decides which spelling to write.
- sole: Being the only one; single and not shared with others.
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