papal

adjective

Definition of papalnext
as in episcopal

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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 papal The group formed after students went viral for holding a mock papal election in their classroom. — Darius Johnson, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026 The 71-year-old American Pope is still relatively young for a pope and remains physically active with weekly tennis matches and riding horses at Castel Gandolfo, the papal retreat, according to reporting from NPR. — Lauren Costantino, Miami Herald, 14 Oct. 2026 Furnished in austere style, the papal suite on the 10th floor of Rome’s Gemelli Hospital is the roost of sick popes. — Anthony Faiola, Washington Post, 14 Oct. 2026 The era of papal health struggles had, many in the Vatican hoped, been put aside in the short term. — Antonia Mortensen, CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for papal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for papal
  1. episcopal
  2. pontifical
  3. apostolic
  4. clerical
  5. ministerial
  6. priestly
  7. evangelical
  8. sacerdotal
Adjective
  • After returning to the United States, Novakovic attended an Episcopal boarding school in San Antonio, Texas.
    — byRachel Cole, Encyclopedia Britannica, 20 May 2026
  • On New Year’s Eve in 1996, Christou followed Deadbeat with a club at a former Episcopal church that was built in 1865.
    — Max Scheinblum, Denver Post, 26 Feb. 2026
Definition of episcopal
Adjective
  • In another decree published Monday, Leo canceled Francis’ plans to move some of the Vatican’s secret archives and library holdings out of the city state and onto the grounds of a pontifical university across town.
    — Nicole Winfield, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Leo opened his visit to Pompeii by meeting with sick and disabled people who are cared for by a charity center affiliated with the sanctuary, which Leo’s namesake, Pope Leo XIII, declared a pontifical basilica in 1901.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 8 May 2026
Definition of pontifical
Adjective
  • Beyond his role within the church, the Pope is also a key international figure, frequently speaking out on high-profile topics such as artificial intelligence and immigration, and making apostolic journeys abroad.
    — Tiago Ventura, Time, 14 Oct. 2026
  • On June 2, 1979, Pope John Paul II set out from Rome on an apostolic journey, as papal trips away from the Vatican are called.
    — Paul Elie, New Yorker, 8 May 2026
Definition of apostolic
Adjective
  • The district’s Digital Teaching and Learning team is reviewing its online catalogs to identify and correct potential clerical errors, Jonas said.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Sabti, who was born in Tehran, said the clerical regime in the capital Tehran does not exercise solid control over the provinces, which resembles parts of South America where some governments lost sovereignty to militias.
    — Benjamin Weinthal, FOXNews.com, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of clerical
Adjective
  • Not to mention the loss of face this suspension would cause his father, who also worked for the Kuomintang and who’d laid his ministerial connections on the line to make his son’s American education possible.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Oct. 2026
  • The ministerial meeting primarily addressed mass-market, peer-to-peer resale platforms and open classified sites handling massive volumes of uncurated, low-cost goods, de Coutard says.
    — Sophie Lou Wilson, Vogue, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of ministerial
Adjective
  • The Illinois native returned to his priestly roots with his last TV appearance as Father Tobias on the daytime soap opera Days of Our Lives.
    — Rachel Flynn, PEOPLE, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Parsi priesthood is hereditary, meaning all the boys here have been born into priestly families.
    — Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 21 June 2026
Definition of priestly
Adjective
  • Like many of those who believe, with evangelical fervor, in the gospel of American opportunity, Capra sprang from elsewhere.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Over the past several decades, however, a growing percentage of people in Latin America, long a Catholic stronghold, have been embracing evangelical churches.
    — Johanna Bard Richlin, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of evangelical
Adjective
  • Prosperity is lauded dozens of times in the Book of Mormon, so knocking for commissions can feel almost sacerdotal.
    — Tad Friend, The New Yorker, 1 Aug. 2022
  • Diminution drains this office of the sacerdotal pomposities that have encrusted it.
    — Conor Friedersdorf, The Atlantic, 1 Aug. 2017
Definition of sacerdotal

Browse Nearby Words

papa
papal
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Cite this Entry

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

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