Churchly

//t͡ʃɜːt͡ʃ.li// adj

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    Pertaining to or relating to the church, its government, forms, or ceremonies; ecclesiastical.

    "[...] upon getting their hearts right in the sight of God, confident, meanwhile, that then all churchly things would not only be conserved, but gathered into right form."

  2. 2
    Devoted to, or inclined to attach great importance to, the order and ritual of a particular section of the Christian church.

    "And in the Smiths of Stratford, in Suffolk, of whom we would now discourse, a middle class family of no great opulence, we have signs of the churchly instinct passing down from generation to generation, [...]"

  3. 3
    In accordance with ecclesiastical standards or ceremonies; appropriate for or befitting a church.

    "churchly music"

  4. 4
    Characteristic of a church; churchy.
Adjective
  1. 1
    resembling or suggesting or appropriate to a church wordnet

Etymology

From Middle English *chirchely, *chirchelich, from Old English ċiriclīċ (“ecclesiastical”), equivalent to church + -ly. Cognate with Scots kirkly (“ecclesiastical”), Dutch kerkelijk (“ecclesiastic, ecclesiastical”), German kirchlich (“ecclesiastical, religious, ecclesiastic”), Swedish kyrklig (“ecclesiastical”). Compare also churchlike.

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