Pontiff

name, noun

name, noun ·2 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A member of the most illustrious of the colleges of priests of the Roman religion, the College of Pontiffs; a pontifex. Ancient-Rome, historical
  2. 2
    the head of the Roman Catholic Church wordnet
  3. 3
    A bishop of the early Church; now specifically, the Pope.

    "In several respects John turned out to be an unexpected figure as supreme pontiff."

  4. 4
    Any chief figure or leader of a religion. figuratively
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname transferred from the nickname.

Synonyms

All synonyms
abunaantipopearchbishoparchdeaconarchpriestbishop

Example

More examples

"The pontiff utilized 21st-century technology and delivered the prayer via livestream by Vatican News and on screens in Saint Peter's Square."

Etymology

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Middle French pontife m, from Latin pontifex m. Doublet of pontifex.

Etymology 2

From pontiff, a nickname for someone who had played the role of the pope in a medieval religious play, or for a vain and pompous person.

Related phrases

pontifex maximus

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