doc·trin·al | \ ˈdäk-trə-nᵊl 
, especially British däk-ˈtrī- \
, especially British däk-ˈtrī- \Definition of doctrinal
: of, relating to, or preoccupied with doctrine
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Other Words from doctrinal
doctrinally \ ˈdäk-trə-nᵊl-ē \ adverb
\ adverbExamples of doctrinal in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web This was not to say that Father Foster advocated a sweeping doctrinal return to the past, as some Latin-language conservatives did.
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Margalit Fox, New York Times, "Reginald Foster, Vatican Latinist Who Tweeted in the Language, Dies at 81," 27 Dec. 2020 The Vatican’s position on civil unions has until now been set forth in a 2003 document by the doctrinal office, then led by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the future Pope Benedict XVI.
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Francis X. Rocca, WSJ, "Pope Francis Backs Civil Unions for Gay Couples, in Shift for Vatican," 21 Oct. 2020 As with many blue-collar workers, his religion is less about doctrinal adherence to faith and morals than solemn and inexpressible sentiments attached to rituals, embedded in a community.
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Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, "Scranton versus Park Avenue," 29 Sep. 2020 The previous standard, offered by the Second Circuit in 1994, required accused students to jump through doctrinal hoops to raise a plausible claim.
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Kc Johnson, WSJ, "Sex, Due Process and Amy Coney Barrett," 30 Sep. 2020 And when considering the speed and scope of doctrinal change, Justice Ginsburg’s thoughts on Roe v. Wade may be relevant.
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Henry Gass, The Christian Science Monitor, "Supreme Court: Would Trump pick inevitably mean a sharp right turn?," 24 Sep. 2020 Though roughly 90 percent of members identify as Catholic, there are a number of doctrinal deviations.
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Sarah Midkiff, refinery29.com, "Did U.S. Supreme Court Frontrunner Amy Coney Barrett’s Religious Group Inspire The Handmaid’s Tale?," 23 Sep. 2020 Despite their doctrinal differences and proselytizing desires, though, Holland and Wood are faithful friends.
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David Noyce, The Salt Lake Tribune, "This week in Mormon Land: LDS voters in political tug of war, apostle on sticking with the church, Eliza Snow’s call to healing sisters," 17 Sep. 2020 Jihad itself is transmogrified into an internal struggle to become a better person, not a doctrinal command to wage war for the purpose of establishing the dominion of sharia (Islam’s law and cultural norms).
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Andrew C. Mccarthy, National Review, "It’s a Straight Line from Biden to BLM," 5 Sep. 2020
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'doctrinal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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Time Traveler for doctrinal
The first known use of doctrinal was in the 15th century
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