evangelical

adjective

evan·gel·i·cal | \ ˌē-ˌvan-ˈje-li-kəl ,

ˌe-vən- \

variants: or less commonly evangelic \ˌē-ˌvan-ˈje-lik,

ˌe-vən- \

Definition of evangelical

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : of, relating to, or being in agreement with the Christian gospel especially as it is presented in the four Gospels

2 : protestant

3 : emphasizing salvation by faith in the atoning death of Jesus Christ through personal conversion, the authority of Scripture, and the importance of preaching as contrasted with ritual

4a capitalized : of or relating to the Evangelical Church in Germany

b often capitalized : of, adhering to, or marked by fundamentalism : fundamentalist

c often capitalized : low church

5 : marked by militant or crusading zeal : evangelistic the evangelical ardor of the movement's leaders —Amos Vogel

evangelical

noun, often capitalized

Definition of evangelical (Entry 2 of 2)

: one holding evangelical principles or belonging to an evangelical party or church

Other Words from evangelical More Example Sentences Learn More about evangelical

Keep scrolling for more

Other words from evangelical

Adjective

Evangelicalism \ˌē-ˌvan-ˈje-li-kə-ˌli-zəm,

ˌe-vən- \ noun

evangelically \ˌē-ˌvan-ˈje-li-k(ə-)lē,

ˌe-vən- \ adverb

Examples of evangelical in a Sentence

Adjective

She is an evangelical Christian. He spoke about the project with evangelical zeal.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Paisley, an evangelical Protestant minister, through his career was an extremist militant in the often violent, historically rooted conflict with the Catholic minority in Ulster. — Arthur I. Cyr, Lake County News-Sun, "Cyr: Britain’s prime minister takes charge of cabinet," 13 July 2018 If the mayor wasn’t evangelical, if the mayor had met with any other group, of another religion, would there be as much attention focused on this? — Washington Post, "Rio city council votes against opening impeachment of mayor," 12 July 2018 Fifty-four years later, church affiliation across America — particularly in mainline and evangelical Protestant communities — remains racially and politically divided. — Tara Isabella Burton, Vox, "Before Trump, churches were increasingly multiracial. What next?," 3 July 2018 Her emails reached the board, which includes corporate executives, investment managers and evangelical leaders. — Sara Randazzo, WSJ, "The Sexting Scandal That Toppled One of America’s Most Powerful Lawyers," 13 July 2018 Franklin Graham, one of Trump's most supportive evangelical leaders, told CBN. — Eugene Scott, Washington Post, "Trump allies keep using the Bible in the immigration debate," 12 July 2018 To be sure, conservative Catholics are a part of that Republican coalition, but a much smaller part than white evangelical Protestants. — Jeet Heer, The New Republic, "Why all the anti-Catholic conspiracy-mongering?," 9 July 2018 What is at stake with evangelical leader Bob Vander Plaats -- after this. — Fox News, "Sen. Rand Paul: Supreme Court vote will be divided along party lines," 28 June 2018 Images of children held in fenced cages fueled a growing chorus of condemnation from both political parties, four former first ladies and national evangelical leaders. — Don Sweeney, sacbee, "Couple seeks $1,500 to reunite kids taken from parents at border. Millions pour in," 19 June 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Republicans also have a chance to make judicial nominees a top campaign issue, which could help motivate conservatives and evangelicals to vote in November. — Anchorage Daily News, "Battle lines already being drawn on Kennedy's successor," 28 June 2018 Republicans also have a chance to make judicial nominees a top campaign issue, which could help motivate conservatives and evangelicals to vote in November. — Robert Barnes, chicagotribune.com, "Battle lines already being drawn on retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy's successor," 28 June 2018 With more than 15 million members, Southern Baptists are the country's largest evangelical denomination, and more than 80% of white evangelicals voted for the Trump-Pence ticket. — Daniel Burke, CNN, "Why some evangelicals don't want Vice President Pence to speak at their meeting," 13 June 2018 Uri Steinberg, the Israeli tourism commissioner for North America, said referring to young evangelicals. — Ian Lovett, WSJ, "Younger Evangelicals Waver in Support for Israel," 3 June 2018 At present, the goals of American evangelicals and the hawkish Israeli government largely align. — Amy Erica Smith, Vox, "Religious conflict in Jerusalem may not have political solutions," 18 May 2018 Fully 80 percent of white evangelicals voted for Trump-Pence in 2016. — Virginia Heffernan, WIRED, "ChurchToo and Mike Pence’s Crisis of Faith," 21 June 2018 The trend was especially pronounced among white evangelicals, who strongly supported Trump and went from being the least likely to the most likely to agree that a candidate's personal immorality had nothing to do with public service. — Jeremy W. Peters, Anchorage Daily News, "Numb to outrage, Republican voters feel a deepening bond to Trump," 24 June 2018 The trend was especially pronounced among white evangelicals, who strongly supported Trump and went from being the least likely to the most likely to agree that a candidate’s personal immorality had nothing to do with public service. — Jeremy W. Peters, BostonGlobe.com, "Republican voters feel a deepening bond to Trump," 24 June 2018

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

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for evangelical

evangelical

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of evangelical

: of or relating to a Christian sect or group that stresses the authority of the Bible, the importance of believing that Jesus Christ saved you personally from sin or hell, and the preaching of these beliefs to other people

: having or showing very strong and enthusiastic feelings

See the full definition for evangelical in the English Language Learners Dictionary

Keep scrolling for more