Vatican

[vat-i-kuhn]

noun

1. Also called Vatican Palace. the chief residence of the popes in Vatican City, now also including a library, archives, art museum, apartments, and administrative offices.

2. the authority and government of the pope (distinguished from theQuirinal ).

Vatican

/ ˈvætɪkən /

noun

1. 1. the palace of the popes in Rome and their principal residence there since 1377, which includes administrative offices, a library, museum, etc, and is attached to the basilica of St Peter's

   2. ( as modifier )

      the Vatican Council

2. 1. the authority of the Pope and the papal curia

   2. ( as modifier )

      a Vatican edict

Word History and Origins

Origin of Vatican¹

1545–55; < Latin vātīcānus ( mōns ) Vatican (hill)

Word History and Origins

Origin of Vatican¹

C16: from Latin Vāticānus mons Vatican hill, on the western bank of the Tiber, of Etruscan origin

Example Sentences

In his early life he was considered to be equal to Leonardo da Vinci, and was commissioned to paint the walls of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican Palace in Rome.

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Following mass, Pope Leo was to attend a lunch at the Vatican with a group of homeless people, refugees and the disabled, while other community events to help the poor were planned around Rome.

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The items had been held in the Vatican Museum's ethnographic collection, known as the Anima Mundi museum.

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Hailed by director Spike Lee as a "great day", the gathering was the first of its kind in the Vatican.

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Spike Lee presented Pope Leo XIV with a New York Knicks jersey on Saturday as the US pope welcomed film stars to the Vatican, where he called cinema a vehicle of hope.

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Related Words

• pontiff