pulpit
Americannoun
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a platform or raised structure in a church, from which the sermon is delivered or the service is conducted.
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the pulpit,
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the clerical profession; the ministry.
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members of the clergy collectively.
In attendance were representatives of medicine, the pulpit, and the bar.
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(especially in Protestantism and Judaism) the position of pastor or rabbi.
He heard of a pulpit in Chicago that was about to be vacated.
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the work of a preacher; preaching.
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(in small craft)
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a safety rail rising about 18 to 30 inches (48 to 76 centimeters) from the deck near the bow and extending around it.
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a similar rail at the stern.
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a control booth in a factory, usually elevated and glass-enclosed, from which an operator can observe and direct the manufacturing process.
noun
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a raised platform, usually surrounded by a barrier, set up in churches as the appointed place for preaching, leading in prayer, etc
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any similar raised structure, such as a lectern
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a medium for expressing an opinion, such as a column in a newspaper
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the preaching of the Christian message
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the clergy or their message and influence
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of pulpit
First recorded in 1300–50; Anglo-Norman pulpit, pulputte, French, Middle French pulpite, from Latin pulpitum “platform, scaffold, stage,” and also in Late Latin “pulpit”
Explanation
If you go into a church and see a minister speaking from a high platform, he's speaking from the pulpit. Pulpit was originally used to refer to the platform in a church that a preacher speaks from, but we often use it metaphorically for any kind of preaching, whether it's religious or not. If someone is trying to tell everyone else how to live, they're speaking from the pulpit, whether they're preaching the embrace of root vegetables or warning us that we will be attacked by aliens.
Vocabulary lists containing pulpit
The Importance of Being Earnest
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Anthem
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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Spirit forced other carriers to "price differently," said Bradley Akubuiro, a partner at advisory firm Bully Pulpit International.
From Barron's • May 9, 2026
Farias is a legal journalist and host of The Bully’s Pulpit, a podcast of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University.
From Slate • Aug. 8, 2025
“The Pulpit Search Committee is confident in Rev. Johnson’s ability to lead and uphold the history and legacy of our institution of faith,” said the memo, dated April 13.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 15, 2024
Marin Gazzaniga wrote the script, based on interviews conducted for the book “Caught in the Pulpit: Leaving Belief Behind,” by Daniel C. Dennett and Linda LaScola.
From New York Times • Sep. 8, 2022
Pulpit thundered against pulpit; for it was not only the reformer, but the anti-reformer, who were the preachers.
From Amenities of Literature Consisting of Sketches and Characters of English Literature by Disraeli, Isaac
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
