evangelical

1 of 2

adjective

evan·​gel·​i·​cal ˌē-ˌvan-ˈje-li-kəl 

ˌe-vən-

variants or less commonly evangelic

ˌē-ˌvan-ˈje-lik 

ˌe-vən-

1

: of, relating to, or being in agreement with the Christian gospel especially as it is presented in the four Gospels

2

: protestant

3

: emphasizing salvation by faith in the atoning death of Jesus Christ through personal conversion, the authority of Scripture, and the importance of preaching as contrasted with ritual

4

a

capitalized : of or relating to the Evangelical Church in Germany

b

often capitalized : of, adhering to, or marked by fundamentalism : fundamentalist

c

often capitalized : low church

5

: marked by militant or crusading zeal : evangelistic

the evangelical ardor of the movement's leaders

—Amos Vogel

Evangelicalism

ˌē-ˌvan-ˈje-li-kə-ˌli-zəm 

ˌe-vən-

noun

evangelically

ˌē-ˌvan-ˈje-li-k(ə-)lē 

ˌe-vən-

adverb

evangelical

2 of 2

noun

often capitalized

: one holding evangelical principles or belonging to an evangelical party or church

Examples of evangelical in a Sentence

Adjective

She is an evangelical Christian.

He spoke about the project with evangelical zeal.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Widespread frustration over organized crime throughout the hemisphere, as well as social changes such as the spread of evangelical Christianity, mean that right-wing leaders may be favored to win upcoming elections in Chile in 2025 and Brazil and Colombia in 2026. —Brian Winter, Foreign Affairs, 10 Dec. 2024

Until now, the only religious program offered at the school has been through the evangelical LifeWise program, which removes children from class for 55 minutes each week for Bible study and field trips to churches. —Toria Sheffield, People.com, 8 Dec. 2024

Noun

Around 2009 and 2010, Shih studied two groups offering Southern California evangelicals a chance to do just that: Project Rescue Los Angeles (PRLA) and Thai Red Light Rescue LA (TRLR). —Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 24 Nov. 2024

In November 2015, at the start of his campaign, Trump scored a favorability rating of just 39 percent among white evangelicals, according to the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI). —David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1527, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1532, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

evangelical

adjective

evan·​gel·​i·​cal

ˌē-ˌvan-ˈjel-i-kəl,

ˌev-ən-

1

: of, relating to, or being in agreement with the Christian gospel especially as given in the four Gospels

2

: stressing salvation by faith in Jesus, the authority of the Bible, and the importance of preaching