1
: steadfast in affection or allegiance : loyal
a faithful friend
2
: firm in adherence to promises or in observance of duty : conscientious
a faithful employee
3
: given with strong assurance : binding
a faithful promise
4
: true to the facts, to a standard, or to an original
a faithful copy
5
obsolete
: full of faith
faithfulness
noun
1
plural in construction
a
: church members in full communion and good standing
—used with the
b
: the body of believers in Islam
—used with the
2
plural faithful or faithfuls
: one who is faithful
especially
: a loyal follower, member, or fan
party faithfuls
Synonyms
Examples of faithful in a Sentence
Adjective
She has provided the company with many years of faithful service.
He insists that he has always been faithful to his wife.
Recent Examples on the Web
Tanya Melendez, EW.com, 13 Apr. 2024
Only a few dozen faithful attended the service as the Israel-Hamas war rages on in Gaza.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 1 Apr. 2024
Editors’ Picks Naturally, group chats among the Dodgers faithful have shifted from the disappointing first outing by the rookie Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto to other matters.
—Jill Cowan, New York Times, 31 Mar. 2024
The Taming of the Shrew adaptation was equal parts imaginative and faithful—including its lively, of-the-times fashion.
10 Things’ costuming helps to illustrate the divide between the central sisters: Stiles’s mercurial Kat and Oleynik’s bubbly Bianca Stratford.
—Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 31 Mar. 2024
In addition to the Solar Power singer’s faithful rendition of the More Songs About Buildings and Food classic, Lorde also shared a lengthy letter about her first time hearing the Talking Heads and why that band is important to her.
—Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 28 Mar. 2024
Except unlike the book, published by author and executive producer Viet Thanh Nguyen in 2015, this confession isn’t read — it’s seen, a shift that propels both the innovations and the errors of the otherwise faithful adaptation.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 10 Apr. 2024
Working alongside co-showrunner Don McKellar (of the underrated Canadian series Sensitive Skin), Park has crafted a vibrant, faithful yet often audacious Sympathizer, premiering April 14, that matches executive producer Nguyen’s brilliant novel in both ambition and execution.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 10 Apr. 2024
The music is basically faithful to the original, but the production is excessive, supercharged.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 29 Mar. 2024
Ben Church, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024
Naturally, the Carolina faithful is curious about the team’s future.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 3 Apr. 2024
And what once appeared to be extraordinary political liabilities — the 91 felony counts against him, his increasingly extreme rhetoric, his role in the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol — have only served to bolster his support among the Republican faithful.
—Lisa Lerer, New York Times, 25 Feb. 2024
The Oregon faithful gave the super senior a loud ovation when he was taken out of the game with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter.
—Victoria Hernandez, USA TODAY, 3 Jan. 2024
Friar faithful in San Diego can subscribe to Padres.
—Carlos Rico, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Mar. 2024
Naturally, Panthers fans have questions about free agency, and that’s why The Charlotte Observer is bringing back the Panthers mailbag to answer some of the big offseason questions asked by the Carolina faithful.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 6 Mar. 2024
His actions on the court this season were not something the UCLA faithful can be proud of.
—Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2024
And while the Baltimore faithful hoped to use that surprising season as a launching pad to even greater heights, the current owners elected not to make any major moves this winter (the addition of Craig Kimbrel notwithstanding).
—Dan Freedman, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024
Adjective
The 2000 John Cusack movie was a faithful adaptation of the 1995 Nick Hornby novel, but like a great cover of a classic hit, the 2020 series modernized it for today.
—Tanya Melendez, EW.com, 13 Apr. 2024
Only a few dozen faithful attended the service as the Israel-Hamas war rages on in Gaza.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 1 Apr. 2024
Editors’ Picks Naturally, group chats among the Dodgers faithful have shifted from the disappointing first outing by the rookie Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto to other matters.
—Jill Cowan, New York Times, 31 Mar. 2024
The Taming of the Shrew adaptation was equal parts imaginative and faithful—including its lively, of-the-times fashion.
10 Things’ costuming helps to illustrate the divide between the central sisters: Stiles’s mercurial Kat and Oleynik’s bubbly Bianca Stratford.
—Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 31 Mar. 2024
In addition to the Solar Power singer’s faithful rendition of the More Songs About Buildings and Food classic, Lorde also shared a lengthy letter about her first time hearing the Talking Heads and why that band is important to her.
—Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 28 Mar. 2024
Except unlike the book, published by author and executive producer Viet Thanh Nguyen in 2015, this confession isn’t read — it’s seen, a shift that propels both the innovations and the errors of the otherwise faithful adaptation.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 10 Apr. 2024
Working alongside co-showrunner Don McKellar (of the underrated Canadian series Sensitive Skin), Park has crafted a vibrant, faithful yet often audacious Sympathizer, premiering April 14, that matches executive producer Nguyen’s brilliant novel in both ambition and execution.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 10 Apr. 2024
The music is basically faithful to the original, but the production is excessive, supercharged.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 29 Mar. 2024
Noun
The Madrid faithful erupted in celebration and barely had time to sit down before their side had taken the lead just two minutes later.
—Ben Church, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024
Naturally, the Carolina faithful is curious about the team’s future.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 3 Apr. 2024
And what once appeared to be extraordinary political liabilities — the 91 felony counts against him, his increasingly extreme rhetoric, his role in the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol — have only served to bolster his support among the Republican faithful.
—Lisa Lerer, New York Times, 25 Feb. 2024
The Oregon faithful gave the super senior a loud ovation when he was taken out of the game with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter.
—Victoria Hernandez, USA TODAY, 3 Jan. 2024
Friar faithful in San Diego can subscribe to Padres.
—Carlos Rico, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Mar. 2024
Naturally, Panthers fans have questions about free agency, and that’s why The Charlotte Observer is bringing back the Panthers mailbag to answer some of the big offseason questions asked by the Carolina faithful.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 6 Mar. 2024
His actions on the court this season were not something the UCLA faithful can be proud of.
—Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2024
And while the Baltimore faithful hoped to use that surprising season as a launching pad to even greater heights, the current owners elected not to make any major moves this winter (the addition of Craig Kimbrel notwithstanding).
—Dan Freedman, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'faithful.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near faithful
Cite this Entry
“Faithful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/faithful. Accessed 28 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
faithful
1 of 2 adjective
faith·ful
ˈfāth-fəl 
1
: loyal sense 1b
a faithful friend
2
: firm in keeping promises or in fulfilling duties
a faithful worker
3
: true to the facts : accurate
faithful copy
faithfulness
noun
faithful
2 of 2 noun
plural faithful or faithfuls
: one that has faith or is faithful
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