doctrinal
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of doctrinal
1400–50; late Middle English < Late Latin doctrīnālis, equivalent to Latin doctrīn ( a ) ( see doctrine) + -ālis -al 1
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.
That point allows Kagan to make what may be the opinion’s most consequential doctrinal move.
From Slate ● Jun. 29, 2026
Antiqua et Nova, a doctrinal note of the Catholic Church published in January of 2025, uses the term “human person.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026
By restoring deference to informed business judgment while reinforcing clearer doctrinal boundaries, Delaware has moved to re-establish the balance that long underpinned confidence in incentives, leadership stability, and predictable rules.
From Barron's ● Jan. 14, 2026
A churchman of exceptional rhetorical skill, Augustine was naturally drawn into doctrinal and intellectual controversies, in which he showed a fearsome determination that his views should win out.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 19, 2025
Superstition was a widely available nostrum for people powerless against the miseries of famine, pestilence and deadly doctrinal conflict.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
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.
