christening
Word family
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
Christening, baptism, and infant baptism all refer to a Christian rite involving water, but they differ in scope and context. Christening is the most everyday term and always implies a baby or young child; it also strongly links the ceremony with the act of naming. Baptism is a wider term that covers the same rite for people of any age — from newborn babies to adults joining the faith. Infant baptism is a formal theological phrase used mainly in church doctrine to contrast with adult or 'believer's baptism'. Naming ceremony is a secular alternative for families who want to celebrate a child's arrival without religious content. In casual British English, 'christening' and 'baptism' are often used for the same event, but only 'christening' clearly signals that a child received their name during the service. For example, you would say 'We are planning the baby's christening' when the naming is important, but 'The church holds baptisms every month' when speaking generally.
Common collocations
Nouns
- christening ceremony
- christening service
- christening gown
- christening party
- christening candle
- christening cake
- christening gift
Phrases
- attend a christening
- hold a christening
- be invited to a christening
Prepositions
- at a christening
- for a christening
Etymology
Christening comes from the verb christen, which entered English through Old English crīstnian, meaning 'to make Christian' or 'to baptise'. This in turn came from crīsten ('Christian'), borrowed from Latin christiānus, and ultimately from Greek christianos, meaning 'follower of Christ'. The -ing suffix turns the action into a noun naming the ceremony itself. The link between baptism and naming has been part of the word's meaning since its earliest English use.