Definition of CONCLAVE

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Ever wonder what happens behind locked doors? The etymology of conclave begs this question as the word comes from a Latin term meaning "room that can be locked up." The English word formerly had the same meaning, but that use is now obsolete. Today, "conclave" refers not to the locked rooms but to the private meetings and secret assemblies that occur within them. "Conclave" is especially likely to refer to a meeting of Roman Catholic cardinals who have secluded themselves to choose a pope, but it can refer to other types of private or secret meetings as well. The meaning of "conclave" has also expanded to include gatherings that are not necessarily secret or private but simply involve people with shared interests.

Examples of conclave in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The clandestine conclave took place as the group had already lost most of its territory and the battle for Mosul was nearing its climax. — Isabel Coles And, WSJ, "Prisoner Recounts Secret Meeting With ISIS Leader Baghdadi," 17 Aug. 2018 The policy conclave, usually held in the spring, was convened to mark the 40th anniversary of the Communist government’s adoption of pro-market policies. — Lingling Wei, WSJ, "China Weighs Skipping Trade Talks After U.S. Tariff Threat," 16 Sep. 2018 Bergoglio was my guess to emerge from the conclave as pope. — Jason Horowitz, Vogue, "How Pope Francis Is Changing the Catholic Church," 16 July 2018 Cardinals younger than 80 are eligible to vote for the next pope in a conclave, when a current pope either resigns or dies. — Frances D'emilio, Fox News, "Pope, making new cardinals, hears Iraqi tell of martyrs," 28 June 2018 Republicans held a long conclave Thursday night in anticipation of a Friday vote. — Chad Pergram, Fox News, "Proposed DACA pathway complicates border wall funding," 25 June 2018 In 1963, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini was chosen during a conclave of his fellow cardinals to succeed the late Pope John XXIII; the new pope took the name Paul VI. — BostonGlobe.com, "This day in history," 20 June 2018 Some extras said they were assigned to portray an actual cardinal during the historic conclave that elected Francis. — New York Times, "‘Extra’ Cardinals Invade the Vatican (Blessings Not Included)," 9 May 2018 Art Is Now More Permanent Than Perishable The robots, monsters and other harum-scarum works of art at Burning Man aren’t all destined for a pyre at the annual conclave in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert. — Brenda Cronin, WSJ, "Met Museum Brings Some Versailles to New York," 31 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'conclave.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.