theological
Americanadjective
-
of, relating to, or involved with theology.
a theological student.
-
based upon the nature and will of God as revealed to humans.
adjective
-
of, relating to, or based on theology
-
based on God's revelation to man of his nature, his designs, and his will
-
informal difficult to understand; esoteric
Other Word Forms
- antitheological adjective
- nontheologic adjective
- nontheological adjective
- nontheologically adverb
- pretheological adjective
- semitheological adjective
- semitheologically adverb
- theologically adverb
- untheologic adjective
- untheological adjective
- untheologically adverb
Etymology
Origin of theological
First recorded in 1520–30; from Medieval Latin theologicālis, from theologic(us) (from Greek theologikós, from theolog(ía) theology + -ikos -ic ) + -ālis -al 1
Explanation
Use the adjective theological to describe things related to religious studies. If you major in religion in college, you can call yourself a theological scholar. A theological university is often called a seminary, a school where all the students learn about some aspect of religion. Scholars use the word theology to describe a thoughtful and rational study of religious beliefs, ideas of God, the history of religion, and more. Some theological students become ministers or priests. The root word is Greek, theologia, "an account of the gods."
Vocabulary lists containing theological
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I've Been to the Mountaintop" (1968)
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World Religions
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The Golden Compass
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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.
Progressive Christian voices, including influencer and commentator Tim Whitaker, described the comparison as “blasphemous,” reflecting a broader concern that religious language is being used in ways that distort core theological meaning.
From Salon • Apr. 5, 2026
His theological commitments are decidedly liberal, perhaps universalist—Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism he sees “as circling the same truth about the universe, about the cosmos.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 12, 2026
General Synod did vote to continue to look into the issue in the future, but bishops had already decided there were theological and legal barriers to having such ceremonies now.
From BBC • Feb. 12, 2026
“These believers are obviously culturally engaged already, but we happen to believe that every form of cultural engagement needs to have a solid theological foundation and support, and we want to help to provide it.”
From Slate • Jan. 30, 2026
His years of contemplation of Hindu scriptures had led initially to theological curiosity, but eventually to a change of faith.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
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.
