noun
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the act of conferring holy orders
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the reception of holy orders
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the condition of being ordained or regulated
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an arrangement or order
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ordination
1350–1400; Middle English ordinacioun < Late Latin ōrdinātiō ordainment, Latin: a putting in order, appointment, equivalent to ōrdinā(re) to order, arrange (derivative of ōrdō, stem ōrdin-, order) + -tiō -tion
Explanation
What an inauguration is to a president, an ordination is to a religious authority. It's the ceremony of bestowing a person with a position of religious authority — as when someone becomes a priest, minister, or shaman. The noun ordination comes from the Latin word ordinare, meaning “put in order.” Becoming a religious leader usually requires training in a seminary followed by an ordination. On the other hand, the ordination of a monarch is a ceremony in which a King’s or Queen’s divine right to rule the country, which was historically considered a birth right, is asserted and initiated without any seminary courses required.
Vocabulary lists containing ordination
100 SAT words Beginning with "O"
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Vocabulary Video Contest (2013) - List 1
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A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
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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.
The order faced particular backlash when a humanoid robot "monk" took part in an ordination ceremony in May, pledging to "devote" itself to Buddhism.
From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026
So when my wife, Julie, and I were invited to Long Island for the ordination of a son of close friends, we gladly accepted—even though we didn’t really know the ropes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
Dame Sarah told Theresa May her approach has always been to encourage clergy in their ministries, even if they were theologically opposed to the ordination of women.
From BBC ● Dec. 31, 2025
He resisted the ordination of women, declaring that Pope John Paul II had once and for all ruled out the possibility.
From BBC ● Apr. 21, 2025
“Most likely, the first place they’ll send us after my ordination will be somewhere in Greece. There’s going to be a lot of rebuilding to do now that the Nazis have left.”
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
