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ecumenical movement

 - 3 dictionary results

ec⋅u⋅men⋅i⋅cal

  [ek-yoo-men-i-kuhl or, especially Brit., ee-kyoo-]
–adjective
1. general; universal.
2. pertaining to the whole Christian church.
3. promoting or fostering Christian unity throughout the world.
4. of or pertaining to a movement (ecumenical movement), esp. among Protestant groups since the 1800s, aimed at achieving universal Christian unity and church union through international interdenominational organizations that cooperate on matters of mutual concern.
5. interreligious or interdenominational: an ecumenical marriage.
6. including or containing a mixture of diverse elements or styles; mixed: an ecumenical meal of German, Italian, and Chinese dishes.
Also, ec⋅u⋅men⋅ic, oecumenical, oecumenic.

Origin:
1835–45; < LL oecumenicus belonging to the whole inhabited world (< Gk oikoumenikós, equiv. to oikoumen- (s. of pass. prp. of oikeîn to inhabit) + -ikos -ic ) + -al 1

Related forms:
ec⋅u⋅men⋅i⋅cal⋅ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Word Origin & History

ecumenical 
c.1570, formed in Eng. as an ecclesiastical word, as if from L. oecumenicus "general, universal," from Gk. oikoumenikos, from he oikoumene ge "the inhabited world (as known to the ancient Greeks); the Greeks and their neighbors considered as developed human society," from oikoumenos, pr. passive participle of oikein "inhabit," from oikos "house, habitation" (see villa).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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