scriptural

American  

[skrip-cher-uhl] / ˈskrɪp tʃər əl /

adjective

1. (sometimes initial capital letter) of, relating to, or in accordance with sacred writings, especially the Scriptures.

2. rendered in or related to writing.

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scriptural British  

/ ˈskrɪptʃərəl /

adjective

1. (often capital) of, in accordance with, or based on Scripture

2. of or relating to writing

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Other Word Forms

• antiscriptural adjective
• nonscriptural adjective
• pro-Scriptural adjective
• scripturally adverb
• scripturalness noun
• unscriptural adjective
• unscripturally adverb

Etymology

Origin of scriptural

From the Late Latin word scrīptūrālis, dating back to 1635–45. See Scripture, -al ¹

Example Sentences

Likely composed by the earliest Buddhist nuns in a variety of Indian languages between 600 and 300 B.C., the verses were later anthologized in Pali, the scriptural language of Theravada Buddhism.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026

James Baldwin’s soaring, sermonic prose; Toni Morrison’s scriptural authority; William Faulkner’s Genesis-like cosmologies of Southern identity and place: All draw heavily on a Christian-inflected aesthetic.

From New York Times • Aug. 24, 2023

Through his studies at mosques and madrasas across the Muslim world, Ibn Tumart had developed a broader outlook than Ibn Yasin, and Ibn Tumart’s cosmopolitan approach challenged Ibn Yasin’s scriptural literalism.

From Textbooks • Apr. 19, 2023

“He was a great pope, a marvellous pope. He was able to explain the scriptural matters of faith and also the traditional teachings of the Church,” said Father Callistus Kahale Kabindama, a priest from Zambia.

From Reuters • Jan. 4, 2023

‘In disputes about natural phenomena,’ wrote Galileo, ‘one must not begin with the authority of scriptural passages, but with sensory experience and necessary demonstrations.’

From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin