ordaining

verb

present participle of ordain
1
as in destining
to determine the fate of in advance he is stoic in the face of adversity, bolstered by his faith that everything in life has been ordained by a higher power

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in ordering
to request the doing of by virtue of one's authority a new bill that would ordain the funding of public schools through state lottery revenues

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in enacting
to put into effect through legislative or authoritative action the founders of the African republic ordained a form of government that was closely modeled on that of the United States

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of ordaining Bishop Felix Davidek responded by secretly ordaining married men and some women, including Ludmila Javorová. — Jonathan Bullington, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026 The church began ordaining women as priests in the 1980s, beginning with Lucia Okuthe of the diocese of Maseno South in 1983. — Stephanie Triplettall, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Aug. 2026 The Vatican said dialogue was offered to the ​group ahead of the schism and that the step of ordaining ​bishops without ⁠church approval was considered so grave that excommunication was automatic. — Reuters, NBC news, 5 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ordaining
  1. dooming
  2. ordering
  3. enacting
  4. requesting
  5. passing
Verb
  • Polyphemus prays to his father Poseidon to curse Odysseus, dooming him on a long and perilous journey.
    — Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The lemmings Trump has placed in positions of power would join in the ridicule, dooming such a candidate’s chances at the GOP nomination.
    — Colleen Kujawa, Chicago Tribune, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of dooming
Verb
  • The leader of a Kenyan doomsday cult linked to more than 400 deaths was convicted Monday of murdering 190 children and one adult after ordering followers to starve themselves to death to meet Jesus.
    — Evelyne Musambi, Los Angeles Times, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Last week, Kyiv also accused Washington of ordering restrictions on its Starshield networks, the military-grade version of SpaceX's Starlink.
    — Elsa Ohlen,Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of ordering
Verb
  • In our moment of reckoning, most of the current momentum is going toward enacting social media bans for kids younger than 16.
    — Allison Parshall, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Let them — especially the new governor, presumably Xavier Becerra — consider enacting new CEQA reforms, holding months of public hearings and ultimately compromising on a deal.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of enacting
Verb
  • Fuel expenses are squeezing daily household budgets and tightening cash flow toward the end of the month, with reports indicating a growing number of French employees are requesting payroll advances to manage month end expenses.
    — , CNBC, 19 Oct. 2026
  • After his arrest, Alfozan refused to speak to the FBI, requesting his attorney.
    — Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of requesting
Verb
  • Walker enters this game with 106 carries and 21 passing targets (14 receptions) in just five games.
    — Scott Chasen, Kansas City Star, 26 Oct. 2026
  • These showers won’t make their way to Sacramento, but a few passing clouds over the region are expected late morning and early afternoon as the decaying pulse of earlier rain passes.
    — Sean Macaday, Sacbee.com, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of passing

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Cite this Entry

“Ordaining.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ordaining. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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