doctrine

American  

[dok-trin] / ˈdɒk trɪn /

noun

• doctrines
  plural

1. 

   a particular principle, position, or policy taught or advocated, as of a religion or government.

   Catholic doctrines;

   the Monroe Doctrine.

   Synonyms:

   belief, precept, theory, dogma, tenet

2. something that is taught; teachings collectively.

   religious doctrine.

3. a body or system of teachings relating to a particular subject.

   the doctrine of the Catholic Church.

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doctrine British  

/ ˈdɒktrɪn /

noun

1. a creed or body of teachings of a religious, political, or philosophical group presented for acceptance or belief; dogma

2. a principle or body of principles that is taught or advocated

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• doctrinality
  noun
• doctrinism
  noun
• doctrinist
  noun
• self-doctrine
  noun
• doctrinal
  adjective
• doctrinally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• doctrines
  plural

Etymology

Origin of doctrine

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin doctrīna “teaching,” from doct(o)r doctor + -īna -ine ²

Explanation

A doctrine is a set of beliefs. The word comes from the Latin doctor for “teacher,” so think of a doctrine is the teachings of a school, religion, or political group. The Monroe Doctrine is the policy that President Monroe introduced in 1823 to limit European influence in the Americas. It has been a major part of U.S. foreign policy, but was revamped in 2013 by Secretary of State John Kerry in the Kerry Doctrine. Doctrine and doctor derive from the same Latin word, docere, which means "to teach": doctor means "teacher," and doctrina means "teaching, learning."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

doctrine doctrines

But I want you to remind folks that there’s actually doctrine on all this.

From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2026

"Constraining LLM development under a misunderstanding of fair use doctrine would thwart such creative and scientific progress while hindering American prosperity and economic mobility," the document read.

From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026

Confirmation is meant to bring recipients closer to God and “imprints on the soul an indelible spiritual mark,” according to the Vatican’s official guide to its doctrine.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

The chapters on the doctrine of “maximum sustainable yield” in fishery management and the fraught international negotiations of fishing rights are a bit of a slog.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

Its expressions of equality are generally used to corroborate some existing doctrine, and little if any effort is expended to construct counter-examples.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos

In my favor: though not a Buddhist, I am intellectually, if not spiritually, drawn to Buddhism’s doctrines of suffering, impermanence and nonattachment.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026

Their military doctrines increasingly emphasize mass production of cheap drones and ballistic missiles designed to overwhelm Western stockpiles.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 5, 2026

Florian Galleri, a historian specialising in contemporary military studies and nuclear doctrines, also warned that Macron would have to tread carefully, pointing to his low approval ratings one year before the end of his presidency.

From Barron's ● Feb. 27, 2026

The writ of habeas corpus, as powerful as it is—and it is—has become more and more difficult to use thanks to layers of legal doctrines lately.

From Slate ● Feb. 17, 2026

I went back to law school with an intense desire to understand the laws and doctrines that sanctioned the death penalty and extreme punishments.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

Related Words

• attitude
• axiom
• belief
• concept
• creed
• dogma
• precept
• proposition
• regulation
• rule
• statement
• teaching
• tenet
• tradition