Jump To:

• Pontius Pilate
  Pontius Pilate

  noun

  flourished early 1st century a.d., Roman procurator of Judea a.d. 26–36?: the final authority concerned in the condemnation and execution of Jesus Christ.
• Pilate, Pontius
  Pilate, Pontius

  The governor of the Jews (see also Jews) at the time of the Crucifixion of Jesus; he was an official of the Roman Empire, to which the Jewish nation belonged at that time. According to the Gospels, Pilate did not consider Jesus guilty and wanted to release him. Under pressure from the crowds in Jerusalem (see also Jerusalem), however, Pilate sentenced Jesus to death on the cross, having first washed his hands to indicate his lack of responsibility for Jesus' fate.

Pontius Pilate

American  

[pon-shuhs pahy-luht, -tee-uhs] / ˈpɒn ʃəs ˈpaɪ lət, -ti əs /

noun

1. flourished early 1st century a.d., Roman procurator of Judea a.d. 26–36?: the final authority concerned in the condemnation and execution of Jesus Christ.

---

Pontius Pilate British  

/ ˈpɒnʃəs, ˈpɒntɪəs ˈpaɪlət /

noun

1. See Pilate

---

Pilate, Pontius Cultural  

1. The governor of the Jews (see also Jews) at the time of the Crucifixion of Jesus; he was an official of the Roman Empire, to which the Jewish nation belonged at that time. According to the Gospels, Pilate did not consider Jesus guilty and wanted to release him. Under pressure from the crowds in Jerusalem (see also Jerusalem), however, Pilate sentenced Jesus to death on the cross, having first washed his hands to indicate his lack of responsibility for Jesus' fate.

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Pontius Pilate Pilate, Pontius

I wasn’t offered the part of Mary Magdalene, which I wanted, but of Pontius Pilate.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 14, 2026

"He cannot do a Pontius Pilate and maintain he cannot interfere because policing is devolved."

From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2025

That was also the case 2,000 years ago when Pontius Pilate ordered the crucifixion of Jesus, who posed a serious threat to the religious and political primacy of the Pharisees, the Herodians and the Romans.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2025

Roman Catholic tradition holds that these are the marble stairs that Jesus climbed at his judgment before the Roman prefect Pontius Pilate.

From New York Times ● Apr. 10, 2019

Pontius Pilate stepped between Hortensius and myself, and waving his hand with great dignity and grace, requested silence.

From In Both Worlds by Holcombe, William Henry

A matter of prudence, according to theological Utilitarianism, 16 Pilate, Pontius, story of his desire to enrol Christ among the Roman gods, i.

From History of European Morals From Augustus to Charlemagne (Vol. 2 of 2) by Lecky, William Edward Hartpole