presbyterian

[ prez-bi-teer-ee-uhn, pres- ]

adjective

1. pertaining to or based on the principle of ecclesiastical government by presbyters or presbyteries.
2. (initial capital letter) designating or pertaining to various churches having this form of government and professing more or less modified forms of Calvinism.

noun

1. (initial capital letter) a member of a Presbyterian church; a person who supports Presbyterianism.

Presbyterian

¹

/ ˌprɛzbɪˈtɪərɪən /

adjective

1. of or relating to any of various Protestant Churches governed by presbyters or lay elders and adhering to various modified forms of Calvinism

noun

1. a member of a Presbyterian Church

presbyterian

²

/ ˌprɛzbɪˈtɪərɪən /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or designating Church government by presbyters or lay elders

noun

1. an upholder of this type of Church government

Derived Forms

• ˌPresbyˈterianism, noun
• ˌpresbyˌterianˈistic, adjective
• ˌpresbyˈterianism, noun

Other Words From

• non-Pres·by·teri·an adjective noun
• pro-Pres·by·teri·an adjective noun
• pseudo-Presby·teri·an adjective noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of presbyterian¹

First recorded in 1635–45; presbytery + -an

Example Sentences

Kathy helps run Limestone Presbyterian Church in Wilmington and one of her jobs is to put up a message with meaning on a sign at the front of the building.

From BBC

Last year Limestone Presbyterian helped to host Christian teenagers from Northern Ireland as part of a cross-community initiative.

From BBC

Each candidate was given roughly equal time to respond to a set of questions from the community, which had gathered at the Peekskill Presbyterian Church on the first day of early voting to field questions and hear from the political hopefuls.

From Salon

“We’re a real conservative community, but there’s this whole barrage of left wingers that have come in — I mean, radicals. Radicals,” said McIntosh, a 73-year-old Presbyterian church elder who favors bedazzled, star-spangled ball caps and drives around with a “Trumplican” bumper sticker.

From Los Angeles Times

Along the way, Carson acquired a powerful ally who gleefully poured fuel on the flames: Andrew Bonar Law, a right-wing firebrand with Ulster Presbyterian roots who became Conservative Party leader late in 1911 and pushed the previously staid Tories “to embrace a policy of revolution without parallel in modern British history,” in Ronan Fanning’s words.

From Salon