sacerdotal

adjective

sac·​er·​do·​tal ˌsa-sər-ˈdō-tᵊl 

ˌsa-kər-

1

: of or relating to priests or a priesthood : priestly

sacerdotal robes

sacerdotal authority

2

: of, relating to, or suggesting sacerdotalism

sacerdotally

ˌsa-sər-ˈdō-tᵊl-ē 

ˌsa-kər-

adverb

Did you know?

Sacerdotal is one of a host of English words derived from the Latin adjective sacer, meaning "sacred." Other words derived from sacer include desecrate, sacrifice, sacrilege, consecrate, sacrament, and even execrable (developed from the Latin word exsecrari, meaning "to put under a curse"). One surprising sacer descendant is sacrum, referring to the series of five vertebrae in the lower back connected to the pelvis. In Latin this bone was called the os sacrum, or "holy bone," a translation of the Greek hieron osteon.

Synonyms

• clerical
• clerkly
• ministerial
• pastoral
• priestly

Examples of sacerdotal in a Sentence

sacerdotal garments such as a cassock and miter

Recent Examples on the Web

Prosperity is lauded dozens of times in the Book of Mormon, so knocking for commissions can feel almost sacerdotal. —Tad Friend, The New Yorker, 1 Aug. 2022

Diminution drains this office of the sacerdotal pomposities that have encrusted it. —Conor Friedersdorf, The Atlantic, 1 Aug. 2017

The brand inspires a sacerdotal devotion in many of its workers (its archives contain the papers of one of the atelier’s premieres, or heads, who served from 1947 to 1990). —Matthew Schneier, New York Times, 1 July 2017

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin sacerdotalis, from sacerdot-, sacerdos priest, from sacer sacred + -dot-, -dos (akin to facere to make) — more at sacred, do

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

sacerdotal

adjective

sac·​er·​do·​tal ˌsas-ər-ˈdōt-ᵊl 

ˌsak-

: of or relating to priests or a priesthood : priestly

sacerdotally

-ᵊl-ē 

adverb