pa·pa·cy | \ ˈpā-pə-sē 
\
\ plural papacies
Definition of papacy
1 : the office of pope
2 : a succession or line of popes
3 : the term of a pope's reign
4 capitalized : the system of government of the Roman Catholic Church of which the pope is the supreme head
Examples of papacy in a Sentence
He was selected by the cardinals for the papacy.
Recent Examples on the Web Even before the coronavirus, Francis no longer had the same global fanfare of the early years of his papacy.
—
Washington Post, "Pope Francis’s new encyclical is a papal warning about a world going backward," 4 Oct. 2020 Some Vatican watchers even spoke of him as a serious candidate for the papacy.
—
Francis X. Rocca, WSJ, "Powerful Cardinal Resigns Amid Financial Scandal," 24 Sep. 2020 Francis has dedicated much of his papacy to highlighting the plight of those living on life's margins, saying societies must put them at the center of their attention.
—
The Salt Lake Tribune, "Pope: Rich can’t get priority for vaccine, poor need help," 19 Aug. 2020 Campbell was a subject in an investigation of nuns conducted by the Church during Pope Benedict XVI's papacy.
—
Nicholas Rowan, Washington Examiner, "Two controversial Catholic leaders to offer prayers at DNC," 17 Aug. 2020 Under normal circumstances, papers covering Pius’ papacy would have been under lock and key until 2028, or 70 years after the end of his tenure.
—
Theresa Machemer, Smithsonian Magazine, "Newly Unsealed Vatican Archives Lay Out Evidence of Pope Pius XII’s Knowledge of the Holocaust," 5 May 2020 Francis’ message appeared aimed at conservative and traditionalist Catholics, including within the Vatican Curia, who have voiced increasing opposition to his progressive-minded papacy.
—
Nicole Winfield, BostonGlobe.com, "Pope denounces ‘rigidity’ as he warns of Christian decline," 21 Dec. 2019 Francis, then known as Cardinal Bergoglio, is a sharp critic of and marked contrast to the traditionally-minded Benedict, who wants the reluctant Argentinian to succeed him in the papacy.
—
Ew Staff, EW.com, "What to Watch this Weekend: At long last, Eddie Murphy returns to Saturday Night Live," 20 Dec. 2019 Few people would ever have expected to dredge up the remains of a pontiff who, nine months after his death, was at the center of on of the most bizarre episodes in the history of the papacy: a posthumous trial of a corpse.
—
National Geographic, "In 897, the corpse of a pope was exhumed—to be put on trial.," 20 Aug. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'papacy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for papacy
papacy
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of papacy
: the office or position of the pope
: the time when a particular pope is in power
See the full definition for papacy in the English Language Learners Dictionary
Comments on papacy
What made you want to look up papacy? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
Farm Idioms Quiz
- What does 'poke' refer to in the expression 'pig in a poke'?
Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridgedWords at Play
Ask the Editors
Word Games
Share papacy
Time Traveler for papacy
The first known use of papacy was in the 14th century
See more words from the same century