1
as in rural
of, relating to, associated with, or typical of open areas with few buildings or people
painted a pastoral scene of a flower-filled meadow
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ministerial
of, relating to, or characteristic of the clergy
pastoral advice to a young couple preparing to marry
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in pastorale
Related Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of pastoral
Jeremy Lybarger, ARTnews.com, 26 Mar. 2025
This is rock and roll as pastoral.
—Mitch Therieau, The New Yorker, 27 Dec. 2024
Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2025
Encircled by mountains and dotted with working ranches, this pastoral basin has become ground zero for California’s fraught and complicated relationship with its resurgent population of gray wolves.
—Sacbee.com, 18 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pastoral
Adjective
Elsewhere, Abercrombie’s pastorals are almost like burlesques of plein air painting.
—Jeremy Lybarger, ARTnews.com, 26 Mar. 2025
This is rock and roll as pastoral.
—Mitch Therieau, The New Yorker, 27 Dec. 2024
Noun
Archbishop Shawn McKnight has launched a preliminary canonical investigation into the issue as well, the archdiocese said, and Storey has been temporarily suspended from priestly ministry, including celebrating Mass and performing pastoral duties.
—Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2025
Encircled by mountains and dotted with working ranches, this pastoral basin has become ground zero for California’s fraught and complicated relationship with its resurgent population of gray wolves.
—Sacbee.com, 18 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pastoral
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pastoral
Adjective
-
His work with rural counties has earned favorable notices, but in urban areas like Phoenix, many of the experts in Joan's reporting raised questions about Livar's effectiveness.—
Shaun McKinnon,
AZCentral.com,
30 Sep. 2025
-
Both were Jewish, but one was metropolitan and the other more rural and artisanal.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
According to Laurie Magnus, the government’s adviser on ministerial standards, her error was not having sought advice from a tax specialist.—
Sam Knight,
New Yorker,
21 Sep. 2025
-
Kais Saied, who is in China on a state visit, attended the opening ceremony of the 10th ministerial conference of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum.—
Jeff Young,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Including 55 serious operas, 6 cantatas, 53 comic operas, 17 operettas, 6 sing-spiele, 4 ballets, 4 vaudevilles, 2 oratorios, one each of fares, pastorales, masques, ballads and buffas.—
WILLIAM ROBIN,
New York Times,
1 Sep. 2017
Noun
-
The park is a tiny idyll full of captivating panoramas, peaceful bird-watching, and stunning views.—
Melissa Locker,
Southern Living,
28 Aug. 2025
-
Rather than the literal pressure-cooker environment of Masterchef or the countryside idyll of the Great British Bake Off, Gastronauts takes joy in messing around, bringing a serious dedication to the outrageously silly challenges.—
Kambole Campbell,
Vulture,
18 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The film marks his second time grappling with the postmodern author’s ideas on screen, following 2014’s Inherent Vice, a rueful elegy to California counterculture, which was itself the first, and to date only, official adaptation of Pynchon in cinema.—
Rory Doherty,
Time,
26 Sep. 2025
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This is her elegy, her memorial, her voice, her face.—
Sophie Monks Kaufman,
IndieWire,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Revered by all three Abrahamic religions, the psalms were often recited, read, and sung in routine worship.—
Brendan Ruberry,
semafor.com,
23 Sep. 2025
-
Archbishop Bernard Hebda addressed some 2,000 people at the vigil, where psalms were sung and the silences burrowed deep in the wide room.—
Jesse Bedayn,
Twin Cities,
28 Aug. 2025
Noun
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This is a lovely fundraiser to assist in the preservation of the cemetery, and the day is filled with master gardeners offering advice, madrigals singing, an archaeology talk, refreshments, kids’ activities and lots of lovely spring plants for sale.—
Janet Kusterer,
Baltimore Sun,
25 Mar. 2025
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The service and concert will take place at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 5, at the church, 815 S. Washington St. Castle Singers are vocalists who perform a variety of chamber repertoire, varying from Renaissance madrigals and motets to contemporary pop and vocal jazz.—
Aurora Beacon-News,
Chicago Tribune,
4 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
One Battle After Another, the sui generis 162-minute epic that’s now in wide release, is many movies in one.—
Simon Vozick-Levinson,
Rolling Stone,
29 Sep. 2025
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The studio didn’t pinch on pennies for Paul Thomas Anderson and Leonardo DiCaprio‘s hyper-contemporary action epic, spending more than $130 million before a global marketing campaign.—
J. Kim Murphy,
Variety,
27 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pastoral.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pastoral. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
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