Christian

¹ American  

[kris-chuhn] / ˈkrɪs tʃən /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or derived from Jesus Christ or His teachings.

   a Christian faith.

2. of, pertaining to, believing in, or belonging to the religion based on the teachings of Jesus Christ.

   Spain is a Christian country.

3. of or relating to Christians.

   many Christian deaths in the Crusades.

4. exhibiting a spirit proper to a follower of Jesus Christ; Christlike.

   She displayed true Christian charity.

5. Sometimes Offensive. decent; respectable.

   They gave him a good Christian burial.

6. Sometimes Offensive. human; not brutal; humane.

   Such behavior isn't Christian.

---

noun

1. a person who believes in Jesus Christ; adherent of Christianity.

2. a person who exemplifies in their life the teachings of Christ.

   He died like a true Christian.

3. a member of any of certain Protestant churches, as the Disciples of Christ and the Plymouth Brethren.

4. the hero of Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress.

5. a male given name.

Christian ² American  

[kris-chuhn] / ˈkrɪs tʃən /

noun

1. Charlie, 1916–42, U.S. jazz guitarist.

---

Christian ¹ British  

/ ˈkrɪstʃən /

noun

1. 1. a person who believes in and follows Jesus Christ

   2. a member of a Christian Church or denomination

2. informal a person who possesses Christian virtues, esp practical ones

---

adjective

1. of, relating to, or derived from Jesus Christ, his teachings, example, or his followers

2. (sometimes not capital) exhibiting kindness or goodness

Christian ² British  

/ ˈkrɪstʃən /

noun

1. Charlie. 1919–42, US jazz guitarist

---

Christian ¹ Cultural  

1. A follower or disciple of Jesus; someone who believes Jesus is the Christ or Messiah. The New Testament mentions that the followers of Jesus were first called Christians within a few years after his death.

---

Christian ² Cultural  

1. A follower of Jesus and his teachings. Christian is also a descriptive term for the institutions and practices of Christianity.

---

Other Word Forms

• Christianly
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of Christian

First recorded in 1250–1300; from Latin Chrīstiānus, from Greek Chrīstiānós, equivalent to Chrīst(ós) Christ + -iānos, from Latin -iānus -ian; replacing Middle English, Old English cristen from Latin, as above

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Christian

Even when the devout Christian decided to retire, he found a way to be of public service.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026

“In real terms, they were nearly as bad as after World War I and World War II and in the 1970s,” wrote a Goldman strategy team led by Christian Mueller-Glissmann.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 17, 2026

It was based on the profile picture of the couple’s shared Facebook account, but Walters had swapped out palm trees for three Christian crosses and the American flag rippling in the breeze.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

After Trump met with Xi in May in Beijing, China released a Christian pastor named Ezra Jin, a Chinese national with family members in the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026

Equable emirs collected taxes for the British, and the British, in return, kept the Christian missionaries away.

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie