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.

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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.

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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

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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

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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.

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Christian ² Cultural  

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

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Other Word Forms

• Christianly
  adjective

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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

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Christian

"Christian didn't try and say all the brakes failed or anything like that, he's just said 'I made a rookie mistake'," says Purnell.

From BBC ● Nov. 13, 2026

Luther’s catechisms, appearing with the finality and exactitude of print, “distilled Christian doctrine into concise, systematic summaries designed to define true belief.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 12, 2026

The team that will improve the most after sit-out transfers become eligible is Mater Dei, which gains 6-8 Ryan Doane from JSerra and 6-11 Ender Berg from Legacy Christian.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 11, 2026

Lamarco first developed an interest in investing during his time as an undergraduate student studying finance at Grove City College, a small Christian liberal-arts school in Pennsylvania.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 10, 2026

On Sundays, blacks had the choice of more than a dozen churches of various Christian denominations.

From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield

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