cathedra

noun

ca·​the·​dra kə-ˈthē-drə 

: a bishop's official throne

Examples of cathedra in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The second chair is the medieval Chair of St. Augustine, the church’s cathedra (the bishop’s chair from which the word cathedral is derived), which has been used for this purpose since at least the 13th century. —Encyclopedia Britannica, 25 Mar. 2026

The new archbishop taking his seat on the cathedra officially signals the start of his service in New York. —Tony Aiello, CBS News, 4 Feb. 2026

The nonprofit held an open house Sunday for its new boutique on the lower level of the cathedra’s Fellowship Hall, providing vulnerable women with low-cost or free clothing and other essentials. —Sal Pizarro, The Mercury News, 1 Oct. 2024

The Orthodox communion has little choice but to engage this situation robustly, for the present patriarch of Moscow is on the brink of turning his cathedra into a slaughter bench, and himself into the accomplice of a war criminal. —Tim Kelleher, National Review, 3 Mar. 2022

Word History

Etymology

Latin, chair — more at chair

First Known Use

circa 1797, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing cathedra

• ex cathedra

Rhymes for cathedra

• octahedra
• polyhedra
• tetrahedra
• piedra