What does "cyril" mean?

Greek missionary; the invention of the Cyrillic alphabet is attributed to him (826-869)

What is a synonym for "cyril"?

Common synonyms include: saint cyril, saint cyril, st. cyril.

//ˈsɪɹəl// name

name ·Rare ·Advanced level

Noun

1
Greek missionary; the invention of the Cyrillic alphabet is attributed to him (826-869) wordnet

Proper Noun

1
A male given name from Ancient Greek; best known for a ninth century missionary to the Slavs.
"Boxers, too, not so long ago a somewhat uncouth section of the community who were seldom if ever mistaken for members of the Vere de Vere family, have taken on a polish which makes their society a pleasure. They have names like Cyril and Percy and Clarence and live up to them."

"I will be playing a tennis match on Saturday with my boyfriend Cyril."

Via Late Latin Cȳrillus, from Ancient Greek Κύριλλος (Kúrillos), from κύριος (kúrios, “lord, master”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.