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Showing results for archbishop. Search instead for archbishop longley.
Synonyms

archbishop

American  
[ahrch-bish-uhp] / ˈɑrtʃˈbɪʃ əp /

noun

  • archbishops
    plural
  1. a bishop of the highest rank who presides over an archbishopric or archdiocese.


archbishop British  
/ ˈɑːtʃˈbɪʃəp /

noun

  1. Abbreviation: abp.   Abp.   Arch.   Archbp.  a bishop of the highest rank

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of archbishop

before 900; Middle English; Old English arcebisceop ( arce- arch- 1 + bisceop bishop ), modeled on Late Latin archiepiscopus < Greek archiepískopos; replacing Old English hēahbisceop ( see high)

Vocabulary lists containing archbishop

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.

See Examples For:

Though his first love was always parish work, we were there for his elevations to auxiliary bishop of San Francisco, bishop of San Diego and, most recently, archbishop of Washington.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 8, 2026

If this sounds more Hollywood than parish church to you, well, it appears that Cardinal Robert McElroy, the archbishop of Washington, agrees.

From Slate Jun. 8, 2026

Still, the archbishop is hopeful that the sparring will blow over.

From The Wall Street Journal Apr. 17, 2026

Other challenges the new archbishop will face are more familiar for leaders of the Church of England.

From BBC Mar. 25, 2026

In 1650 James Ussher, archbishop of Armagh, calculated from Old Testament genealogical data that God created the universe on Sunday, October 23, 4004 b.c.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Soon after, she was one of just a handful of people from Synod appointed to the Crown Nominations Commission, a panel that selects new bishops and archbishops.

From BBC Jun. 29, 2025

By 08:30, archbishops and bishops will gather in the Constantine Wing, adjacent to the basilica, wearing liturgical clothes including simple white miter.

From BBC Apr. 22, 2025

But, the archbishops - who have held talks with Mr Gove about the plans - believe the government risks disproportionately targeting Muslim communities.

From BBC Mar. 12, 2024

Francis made the unscripted comments at the end of Mass, calling up the former and current archbishops of Hong Kong, Cardinal John Tong Hon and Archbishop Stephen Chow, to flank him as he spoke.

From Reuters Sep. 3, 2023

Composers spent half their lives walking across Germany to work for different archbishops and archdukes.

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

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