Merriam-Webster on Babylon-Pro: Get instant results from Merriam-Webster in any desktop application in a single click!
Upward Mobility--Make your move!: Classic Merriam-Webster content is now available on classic mobile platforms.

The Word of the Day for November 08, 2009 is:

sacerdotal • \sass-er-DOH-tul\

• adjective

*1 : of or relating to priests or a priesthood : priestly

2 : of, relating to, or suggesting religious belief emphasizing the powers of priests as essential mediators between God and mankind

Example Sentence:

It surprised Jim whenever Father Thomas would shed his sacerdotal role to take up a secular topic of conversation such as contemporary rock music.

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 unlikely "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."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.