ecclesiastical

[ ih-klee-zee-as-ti-kuhl ]

adjective

1. of or relating to the church or the clergy; churchly; clerical; not secular.

ecclesiastical

/ ɪˌkliːzɪˈæstɪkəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to the Christian Church

Derived Forms

• ecˌclesiˈastically, adverb

Other Words From

• ec·clesi·asti·cal·ly adverb
• anti·ec·clesi·asti·cal adjective
• anti·ec·clesi·asti·cal·ly adverb
• inter·ec·clesi·asti·cal adjective
• inter·ec·clesi·asti·cal·ly adverb
• nonec·clesi·asti·cal adjective
• nonec·clesi·asti·cal·ly adverb
• unec·clesi·asti·cal·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of ecclesiastical¹

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; Ecclesiastes, -ical

Example Sentences

Only ecclesiastical authorities sanction marriage, and do so with additional patriarchal commitments.

From Salon

Across the decades, there were many cases of ecclesiastical civil disobedience — clergy doing ordinations and marriages that defied church bans, some of whom were tried for heresy or other infractions.

From Seattle Times

He’d learned the names of people at the church, used ecclesiastical vocabulary and knew where to find the loot, he said.

From Los Angeles Times

Chesterton would later call “a nation with the soul of a church,” one that relies on citizens’ deep spiritual faith without imposing any particular ecclesiastical doctrine.

From Salon

The church’s first criticism of the government’s security strategy arose in 2022, when the murder of two Jesuits priests in the north of the country shook the public opinion and the ecclesiastical hierarchy.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• clerical
• sectarian