Word of the Day

: September 24, 2006

pontificate

verb pahn-TIF-uh-kayt

What It Means

: to speak or express opinions in a pompous or dogmatic way

pontificate in Context

Joan didn't tell Harry about her decision to sell her house herself, knowing she'd have to listen to him pontificate at length on all the reasons people use real estate agents.

Did You Know?

In ancient Rome, the pontifices were powerful priests who administered the part of civil law that regulated relationships with the deities recognized by the state. Their name, "pontifex," derives from the Latin words "pons," meaning "bridge," and "facere," meaning "to make," and some think it may have developed because the group was associated with a sacred bridge over the river Tiber (although there is no proof of that). With the rise of Catholicism, the title "pontifex" was transferred to the Pope and to Catholic bishops. "Pontificate" derives from "pontifex," and in its earliest English uses it referred to things associated with such prelates. By the early 1800s, "pontificate" was also being used derisively for individuals who spoke as if they had the authority of an ecclesiastic.