as in ecclesiastical
of or relating to a church
a council to make final determinations on ecclesiastic matters
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in priest
a person specially trained and authorized to conduct religious services in a Christian church
as the leading ecclesiastic for his church in the state, the bishop must be beyond reproach in everything he does
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ecclesiastic
Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 2 Apr. 2025
Forget Fleabag, Conclave, Nobody Wants This, or Ramy, there’s a new ecclesiastic bombshell on the block.
—Riann Phillip, Vogue, 31 Jan. 2025
But Thondup is also sharply critical of the Tibetan political and ecclesiastic elite for their gross mismanagement of their relations with China.
—Anne F. Thurston, Foreign Affairs, 23 Feb. 2016
As Sheldon Wolin, author of Politics and Vision, and many others have pointed out, the Middle Ages and Renaissance saw a powerful flow of ideas from ecclesiastic to secular political philosophy.
—Jonathan Schlefer, Foreign Affairs, 14 Mar. 2015
America has no aristocracy or ecclesiastic master class.
—Brian T. Allen, National Review, 12 Feb. 2022
The Vatican defended the extension by saying the agreement was purely ecclesiastic and pastoral in nature, and not political.
—Nicole Winfield, Star Tribune, 22 Oct. 2020
The motif appeared in ecclesiastic architecture from the 13th to the 15th centuries.
—Jasper Bastian, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Sep. 2020
The church is an example of early ecclesiastic architecture, is the second oldest synagogue remaining in Cincinnati and is the oldest still church still used for religious purposes.
—Max Londberg, Cincinnati.com, 5 Aug. 2019
Victor Pérez-Díaz, Foreign Affairs, 6 Dec. 2013
Of all the precious goods accumulated by the rulers and ecclesiastics of late medieval Ethiopia, the most charged of all were books.
—Peter Brown, The New York Review of Books, 24 Sep. 2020
This shop for ecclesiastics has an exquisite selection of high-quality pieces.
—Zoe Ruffner, Vogue, 19 Dec. 2019
Rather, Ryrie, a prize-winning historian as well as an ecclesiastic, has broadened his scope to take in nearly 750 years of doubt and disbelief in the professedly Christian West.
—Graham Hillard, National Review, 5 Dec. 2019
The old cloister, as the walled domain of the Chapter of Canons was called, housed unusual and not invariably pious persons, as well as the worldly ecclesiastics themselves.
—Bruce Dale, National Geographic, 17 Apr. 2019
This was the Fairy Tree L’Arbre des Dames or Le Beau Mai tree, whereupon extra-ecclesiastic celebrations were staged.
—C.d. Wright, Harper's magazine, 10 Jan. 2019
There are nearly 70 community leaders — from entrepreneurs to ecclesiastics (and a rabbi thrown in for good measure) — who have joined to address the problems that have held Louisville back for decades.
—Joseph Gerth, The Courier-Journal, 2 Feb. 2018
Adjective
Forbidden passion fueled the plot of The Thorn Birds in which the late Richard Chamberlain, played the priest Ralph de Bricassart, a heartthrob in ecclesiastic wear.
—Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 2 Apr. 2025
Forget Fleabag, Conclave, Nobody Wants This, or Ramy, there’s a new ecclesiastic bombshell on the block.
—Riann Phillip, Vogue, 31 Jan. 2025
But Thondup is also sharply critical of the Tibetan political and ecclesiastic elite for their gross mismanagement of their relations with China.
—Anne F. Thurston, Foreign Affairs, 23 Feb. 2016
As Sheldon Wolin, author of Politics and Vision, and many others have pointed out, the Middle Ages and Renaissance saw a powerful flow of ideas from ecclesiastic to secular political philosophy.
—Jonathan Schlefer, Foreign Affairs, 14 Mar. 2015
America has no aristocracy or ecclesiastic master class.
—Brian T. Allen, National Review, 12 Feb. 2022
The Vatican defended the extension by saying the agreement was purely ecclesiastic and pastoral in nature, and not political.
—Nicole Winfield, Star Tribune, 22 Oct. 2020
The motif appeared in ecclesiastic architecture from the 13th to the 15th centuries.
—Jasper Bastian, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Sep. 2020
The church is an example of early ecclesiastic architecture, is the second oldest synagogue remaining in Cincinnati and is the oldest still church still used for religious purposes.
—Max Londberg, Cincinnati.com, 5 Aug. 2019
Noun
The end result was a new brand of ecclesiastics and lay Catholics who felt comfortable detaching themselves from Franco’s regime, or even fighting it head-on in a variety of forums, including student movements, intellectual circles, unions, political parties, and the media.
—Victor Pérez-Díaz, Foreign Affairs, 6 Dec. 2013
Of all the precious goods accumulated by the rulers and ecclesiastics of late medieval Ethiopia, the most charged of all were books.
—Peter Brown, The New York Review of Books, 24 Sep. 2020
This shop for ecclesiastics has an exquisite selection of high-quality pieces.
—Zoe Ruffner, Vogue, 19 Dec. 2019
Rather, Ryrie, a prize-winning historian as well as an ecclesiastic, has broadened his scope to take in nearly 750 years of doubt and disbelief in the professedly Christian West.
—Graham Hillard, National Review, 5 Dec. 2019
The old cloister, as the walled domain of the Chapter of Canons was called, housed unusual and not invariably pious persons, as well as the worldly ecclesiastics themselves.
—Bruce Dale, National Geographic, 17 Apr. 2019
This was the Fairy Tree L’Arbre des Dames or Le Beau Mai tree, whereupon extra-ecclesiastic celebrations were staged.
—C.d. Wright, Harper's magazine, 10 Jan. 2019
There are nearly 70 community leaders — from entrepreneurs to ecclesiastics (and a rabbi thrown in for good measure) — who have joined to address the problems that have held Louisville back for decades.
—Joseph Gerth, The Courier-Journal, 2 Feb. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ecclesiastic
Adjective
-
The first, known as the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine, argued the SBC is exempt from a court outside the denomination ruling on an internal church disciplinary matter.—
Liam Adams,
The Tennessean,
2 July 2025
-
Because the actual date of the spring equinox can differ by a day or two, the Catholic Church created a fixed date of March 21 to define it, known as the ecclesiastical equinox.—
Kaycee Sloan,
The Enquirer,
2 July 2025
Noun
-
And, over time, fewer new European priests arrived in Kongo, making translation less necessary.—
Livia Gershon,
JSTOR Daily,
12 July 2025
-
One particular enemy of Gauguin’s was Bishop Martin, a Catholic priest on Hiva Oa who did his best to stomp out local custom, forbidding tattooing, Polynesian dancing, and the customary practice of polyandry.—
Alexandra Schwartz,
New Yorker,
11 July 2025
Adjective
-
Along the roadway, trucks mounted with huge speakers played pounding religious music set to bass-heavy beats, making the ground tremble.—
Aishwarya S. Iyer,
CNN Money,
25 July 2025
-
The murders of Charles Vallow and Brandon Boudreaux Vallow Daybell met her current husband, Chad Daybell, in 2018 at a religious conference in Utah.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
25 July 2025
Noun
-
The Atlanta preacher was visiting the city to march alongside striking workers.—
Marley Malenfant,
Austin American Statesman,
22 July 2025
-
The dynamic and popular preacher discomfited many in his parish with his increasingly pointed critiques of inequities and corruption in the city.—
Time,
Time,
22 July 2025
Noun
-
Images on social media showed clergymen in black robes who had rushed to the scene jostling with police as members of the NSS stood by.—
Avet Demourian,
Los Angeles Times,
27 June 2025
-
Born in 1775, Austen grew up in the Hampshire countryside, where her father served as a clergyman in the village of Steventon.—
Ellen Wexler,
Smithsonian Magazine,
8 July 2025
Noun
-
And with that, a one-time refugee officially became San Diego County’s newest bishop and the first Vietnamese American to lead a diocese in the United States.—
Blake Nelson,
Mercury News,
18 July 2025
-
Other examples of similar rebukes have come from Catholic figures such as Reverend Michael Pham, bishop of San Diego, California, who joined several of his colleagues in calling for priests, deacons and parish leaders to accompany migrants to court and stand in solidarity with them.—
Jordan King,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ecclesiastic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ecclesiastic. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.
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