orthodox

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adjective or·tho·dox \ ˈȯr-thə-ˌdäks \

Definition of orthodox

1 a :conforming to established doctrine especially in religion

orthodox principles

the orthodox interpretation

b :conventional

took an orthodox approach to the problem

orthodox medicine

2 capitalized :of, relating to, or constituting any of various conservative religious or political groups: such as

a :eastern orthodox

Greek Orthodox rituals

b :of or relating to Orthodox Judaism

Orthodox Jews in their black suits and hats and modest dresses

—

orthodoxly

adverb

See orthodox defined for English-language learners

See orthodox defined for kids

Examples of orthodox in a Sentence

He took an orthodox approach to the problem.
She believes in the benefits of both orthodox medicine and alternative medicine.
He is a very orthodox Muslim.
I attend an Eastern Orthodox church.
My grandmother is Russian Orthodox.

Recent Examples of orthodox from the Web

Her father Ganpatrao, straying from orthodox Hindu customs regarding women and girls, encouraged Joshee’s education and enrolled her in school from an early age.

— leila mcneill, Smithsonian, "This 19th Century Lady Doctor Helped Usher Indian Women Into Medicine," 24 Aug. 2017
My husband is an orthodox priest at St. Michael's Russian Orthodox Church in Broadview Heights.

— allison carey, cleveland.com, "Jani Memorich balances family, fitness, work and a modern wardrobe: Fashion Flash (photos)," 24 Aug. 2017
The premise: Menashe (Lustig), a kind but hapless grocery store clerk in New York’s ultra-orthodox Hasidic Jewish community, struggles to make ends meet and responsibly parent his young son, Rieven (Niborski), after his wife’s death.

— Detroit Free Press, "Review: In ‘Menashe,’ a father and son confront Hasidic tradition," 18 Aug. 2017
O’Malley switched to orthodox and both continued to land well with a cut opening up over Khashakyan’s left eye.

— grant gordon, Glendale News-Press, "Khashakyan KO'd by O'Malley in Tuesday Night Contender Series," 18 July 2017
His parents are Orthodox Jews, and his father worked for a jewelry retailer, while his mother cared for Shrem and his two sisters.

— brian patrick eha, Fortune, "Can Bitcoin’s First Felon Help Make Cryptocurrency a Trillion-Dollar Market?," 26 June 2017
Benjamin Israel, an African-American and Orthodox Jew, tried to get Forrest Street renamed more than a decade ago and took up the cause again two years ago after vandals painted over streets named for Forrest, Robert E. Lee and John Bell Hood.

— susannah bryan, Sun-Sentinel.com, "As cities purge Confederate symbols, fight rages on in Hollywood," 20 June 2017
The ceremony closed with services conducted by the congregational rabbis to dedicate the initial Reform, Conservative and Orthodox sections of the cemetery.

— cincinnati, Cincinnati.com, "JCGC dedicates new cemetery in Loveland," 12 June 2017
When President Donald Trump signed an executive order on religious liberty last month, he was surrounded in the White House Rose Garden by religious figures—Catholics, orthodox Jews, Sikhs and a host of evangelical Christians.

— ian lovett, WSJ, "Russell Moore, Baptist Leader Who Shunned Trump, Splits the Faithful," 9 June 2017

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

Did You Know?

An orthodox religious belief or interpretation is one handed down by a church's founders or leaders. When capitalized, as in Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox refers to a branch within a larger religious organization that claims to honor the religion's original or traditional beliefs. The steadfast holding of established beliefs that is seen in religious orthodoxy is apparent also in other kinds of orthodox behavior. Orthodox medical treatment, for example, follows the established practices of mainstream medicine. Unorthodox thinking is known in business language as "thinking outside the box".

Origin and Etymology of orthodox

Middle English orthodoxe, from Middle French or Late Latin; Middle French orthodoxe, from Late Latin orthodoxus, from Late Greek orthodoxos, from Greek orth- + doxa opinion — more at doxology

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First Known Use: 15th century

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orthodox Synonyms

Synonyms

ceremonial, ceremonious, conventional, formal, regular, routine

Other Jewish Religion Terms

Talmud, Zion, challah, dybbuk, kosher, tabernacle, tetragrammaton, yarmulke

orthodox

noun

Definition of orthodox

plural orthodox also orthodoxes

1 :one that is orthodox

2 capitalized :a member of an Eastern Orthodox church

Recent Examples of orthodox from the Web

The signing of three orthodox attacking fullbacks in Kyle Walker, Danilo and Benjamin Mendy perhaps signals a slight change of approach.

— jonathan wilson, SI.com, "Premier League Preseason Tiers: Ranking the Contenders to the Relegation Candidates," 9 Aug. 2017
The move, announced late Tuesday via a letter sent from President Donald Trump to Comey, marked the most unpredictable moment of a presidency that through its first 100-plus day has been the least orthodox in memory.

— chris cillizza, CNN, "Firing James Comey was Donald Trump's most unpredictable and dangerous move yet," 9 May 2017
For orthodox Republicans, the central issue is, of course, taxes.

— atul gawande, The New Yorker, "Trumpcare vs. Obamacare," 6 Mar. 2017
Trump promises not just to reverse almost immediately all of Obama’s policies, but to do so in a pragmatic fashion that does not seem to be guided by any orthodox or consistently conservative ideology.

— victor davis hanson, The Mercury News, "Hanson: Trump’s centrist agenda is actually a return to normalcy," 2 Feb. 2017
Despite the advent of the Internet, the diminishing of traditional news media companies and the emergence of new media Goliaths like Facebook that have helped fuel his rise, Mr. Sanders remains orthodox in his mass media doctrine.

— jason horowitz, New York Times, "As News Media Changes, Bernie Sanders’s Critique Remains Constant," 23 Feb. 2016

Origin and Etymology of orthodox

see ¹orthodox

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1587

See Words from the same year

Other Christian Religious Terms

Pentateuch, blasphemy, curate, doxology, eremite, iconoclasm, liturgy, orison, pneuma, reliquary

ORTHODOX Defined for English Language Learners

orthodox

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adjective

Definition of orthodox for English Language Learners

: accepted as true or correct by most people : supporting or believing what most people think is true
: accepting and closely following the traditional beliefs and customs of a religion
Orthodox : of or relating to the Orthodox Church