Related Searches
Nearby Words
noun
1.
the office or term of office of a pontiff.
verb (used without object), pon·tif·i·cat·ed, pon·tif·i·cat·ing.
2.
to perform the office or duties of a pontiff.
3.
to speak in a pompous or dogmatic manner: Did he pontificate about the responsibilities of a good citizen?
4.
to serve as a bishop, especially in a Pontifical Mass.
:10
:09
:08
:07
:06
:05
:04
:03
:02
:01
Pontificate
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is absquatulate. Does it mean:
| to flee; abscond: |
| to bark; yelp. |
Origin:
1575–85; (noun) < Latin pontificātus; see pontifical, -ate3; (v.) < Medieval Latin pontificātus past participle of pontificāre to be an ecclesiastic; see -ate1
1575–85; (noun) < Latin pontificātus; see pontifical, -ate3; (v.) < Medieval Latin pontificātus past participle of pontificāre to be an ecclesiastic; see -ate1
Related forms
pon·tif·i·ca·tion, noun
pon·tif·i·ca·tor, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
|
Link To pontificate
Example Sentences
- Leo and Hilarius, and succeeded the latter in the pontificate in 497.
- Klein, gathers children's letters to the Pope on the 25th anniversary of his pontificate.
- Maybe he's just a short man who needs to pontificate.
Collins
World English Dictionary
| pontificate | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | Also (less commonly): pontify to speak or behave in a pompous or dogmatic manner |
| 2. | to serve or officiate as a pontiff, esp in celebrating a Pontifical Mass |
| —n | |
| 3. | the office or term of office of a pontiff, now usually the pope |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
pontificate
1818, "to act as a pontiff," from pp. stem of M.L. pontificare, from L. pontifex (see pontiff). Meaning "to assume pompous and dignified airs, issue dogmatic decrees" is from 1825.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Cite This Source
Word Dynamo By Dictionary.com
Dictionary.com, LLC. Copyright © 2012. All rights reserved.