Main Entry: ¹car·di·nal

Pronunciation: \ˈkärd-nəl, ˈkär-də-\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin cardinalis, from Late Latin cardinalis, adjective

Date: 12th century

1 : a high ecclesiastical official of the Roman Catholic Church who ranks next below the pope and is appointed by him to assist him as a member of the college of cardinals
2 : cardinal number —usually used in plural
3 [from its color, resembling that of the cardinal's robes] : a crested finch (Cardinalis cardinalis of the family Cardinalidae) of the eastern United States and adjacent Canada, the southwestern United States, and Mexico to Belize which has a black face and heavy red bill in both sexes and is nearly completely red in the male

— car·di·nal·ship \-ˌship\ noun

[cardinal illustration]