 pontifical |
||
| 1. | [ adjective ] denoting or governed by or relating to a bishop or bishops | |
| Synonyms: | episcopal | |
| Related terms: | bishop | |
| 2. | [ adjective ] proceeding from or ordered by or subject to a pope or the papacy regarded as the successor of the Apostles | |
| Synonyms: | papal apostolical apostolic | |
| Examples: | "papal dispensation" |
|
| Related terms: | pope pope | |
| 3. | [ adjective ] puffed up with vanity | |
| Synonyms: | pompous overblown portentous grandiloquent | |
| Examples: | "a grandiloquent and boastful manner" "overblown oratory" "a pompous speech" "pseudo-scientific gobbledygook and pontifical hooey"- Newsweek |
|
| Related terms: | pretentious | |
| Similar spelling: |
pontificate pontiff pontifex |
|
