variants
or less commonly baptise
baptized also baptised; baptizing also baptising
1
religion
: to administer baptism (see baptism sense 1) to
baptize a child in the Episcopal Church
was baptized a Catholic as an infant
2
a
: to purify or cleanse spiritually especially by a purging (see purge entry 1 sense 1) experience or ordeal
… baptized with pain and rapture, tears and fire …—
Sidney Lanier
Sidney Lanier
b
: initiate
Both developments were baptized under last season's conditions of scanty snow …—New York Times
New York Times3
: to give a name to (as at baptism) : christen
They baptized their son "John" after the baby's grandfather.
: to administer baptism
baptizer
noun
Examples of baptize in a Sentence
The priest baptized the baby.
She was baptized at the age of 20.
Recent Examples on the Web
Elizabeth was dressed in the garment as a very young princess in 1926, when she was baptized.
—Laura Scafati, Vanity Fair, 3 Mar. 2026
O’Connell and Piqué, a husband-and-wife reporting team, were longtime friends of Pope Francis, who had baptized their two children in Argentina while still a cardinal there and later also married the couple.
—Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 1 Mar. 2026
Willie Mae’s invitation to come to church with her, which was in walking distance, was the beginning of a friendship that introduced me the Children’s Choir in her church and later being baptized in a rock pit in Opa-locka on a cold February Sunday morning.
—Bea L. Hines, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2026
While the vast majority of Italy’s 59 million people are baptized Catholic, about three-quarters identify with the religion and far fewer regularly attend church.
—ABC News, 22 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for baptize
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Laura Scafati, Vanity Fair, 3 Mar. 2026
O’Connell and Piqué, a husband-and-wife reporting team, were longtime friends of Pope Francis, who had baptized their two children in Argentina while still a cardinal there and later also married the couple.
—Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 1 Mar. 2026
Willie Mae’s invitation to come to church with her, which was in walking distance, was the beginning of a friendship that introduced me the Children’s Choir in her church and later being baptized in a rock pit in Opa-locka on a cold February Sunday morning.
—Bea L. Hines, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2026
While the vast majority of Italy’s 59 million people are baptized Catholic, about three-quarters identify with the religion and far fewer regularly attend church.
—ABC News, 22 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for baptize
Cite this Entry
“Baptize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/baptize. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
baptize
verb
bap·tize
bap-ˈtīz 
ˈbap-ˌtīz
baptized; baptizing
1
: to dip in water or sprinkle water on as a part of the ceremony of receiving into the Christian church
2
a
: to make pure in spirit (as by a painful experience)
3
: to give a name to (as in the ceremony of baptism) : christen
baptizer
noun
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