Synonyms

ordained

American

[awr-deynd] / ɔrˈdeɪnd /

adjective

having been invested with ministerial, priestly, or rabbinical functions.

Today’s lecturer is an ordained rabbi and a Talmudic scholar.
having been decreed, appointed, or formally established by some authority.

If questioned, I will invoke my constitutionally ordained right to avoid incriminating myself.
having been destined or predestined.

Cortez believed himself the ordained conqueror of the Aztec Empire.

noun

Usually the ordained a person or persons who have been invested with ministerial, priestly, or rabbinical functions, or the category of those so invested.

Christian leaders, especially the ordained, are expected to reflect and model the faith which they profess and teach.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of ordain.

Usage

What does ordained mean? Ordained is an adjective that means having gained official status as a priest, minister, or other religious authority through a sanctioned process.Ordained is also the past tense of the verb ordain, meaning to invest someone with such authority. It has several other more general meanings, including to order, command, decree, or destine. The process or ceremony in which a priest or minister is ordained is called ordination.Example: Only an ordained minister can perform the ceremony.

Other Word Forms

self-ordained adjective
unordained adjective

Etymology

Origin of ordained

ordain ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

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.

"I had a wonderful letter from an ordained woman who said the announcement of my appointment was the first time that she felt affirmed as a priest," she told BBC Radio 4.

From BBC

Coming just over three decades after the first women priests were ordained in the Church of England, it seems a natural development.

From BBC

His children were working, getting married and established in their own homes, and he’d been ordained as a pastor in 1999 and was deeply involved in his church.

From Los Angeles Times

Both ordained ministers, they talked about their faith and efforts at bipartisanship.

From Los Angeles Times

Bishop Emily Onyango - the first woman ordained as a bishop in the Anglican Church of Kenya - called the news that Dame Sarah had been named Archbishop designate "a new dawn".

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023