pontiff
[pon-tif]
- any pontifex.
- any high or chief priest.
- Ecclesiastical.
- a bishop.
- the Roman Catholic pope, the Bishop of Rome.
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Origin of pontiff
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for pontiff
Contemporary Examples
But the current pontiff, for reasons one might fully understand, declined to meet the would-be papal assassin.
The pontiff blasts the selfishness, arrogance and detachment of the cardinals in Rome.
Pope Francis Denounces the Vatican Elite’s 'Spiritual Alzheimer’s'Barbie Latza Nadeau
December 23, 2014
With more threats than ever on the Vatican, is the pontiff making a dangerous mistake?
Is The Pope Unprotected Now That He’s Fired the Head of the Swiss Guards?Barbie Latza Nadeau
December 5, 2014
He was released in 2010, and now wants to meet Pope Francis when the pontiff visits Turkey next week.
First, in his opening remarks yesterday, the pontiff towed a much more conservative line than his legion of new fans might expect.
Historical Examples
Now, let us compare the rank of the emperor with that of the pontiff.
The Formation of Christendom, Volume VIThomas W. (Thomas William) Allies
Forget that he is a sovereign and a pontiff, and think of him as a tender and loving friend.
The Eternal CityHall Caine
He obtained the Roman pontiff's license to preach to the pagans in Franconia, in Germany.
Fox's Book of MartyrsJohn Foxe
The missive, however, never reached the pontiff to whom it was addressed.
The Swedish Revolution Under Gustavus VasaPaul Barron Watson
Upon the decease of the pontiff, Rome was immediately in arms.
History Of Florence And Of The Affairs Of ItalyNiccolo Machiavelli
pontiff
- a former title of the pagan high priest at Rome, later used of popes and occasionally of other bishops, and now confined exclusively to the pope
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Word Origin
C17: from French pontife, from Latin pontifex
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for pontiff
n.
c.1600, "high priest," from French pontif (early 16c.), from Latin pontifex, title of a Roman high priest (see pontifex). Used for "bishop" in Church Latin, but not recorded in that sense in English until 1670s, specifically "the bishop of Rome," the pope. Pontifical, however, is used with this sense from mid-15c.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
pontiff
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.