pontificate

1 of 2

verb

pon·​tif·​i·​cate pän-ˈti-fə-ˌkāt 

pontificated; pontificating

intransitive verb

1

: to speak or express opinions in a pompous or dogmatic way

He does not pontificate about whether one ought to choose, if forced to it, to betray one's country rather than one's friends …

—Robin W. Winks

What these interviews generally come down to is an invitation to writers to pontificate upon things for which it is either unseemly for them to speak (the quality of their own work) or upon which they are unfit to judge (the state of the cosmos).

—Joseph Epstein

2

a

: to officiate as a pontiff

b

: to celebrate pontifical mass

pontification

(ˌ)pän-ˌti-fə-ˈkā-shən 

noun

pontificator

pän-ˈti-fə-ˌkā-tər 

noun

pontificate

2 of 2

noun

pon·​tif·​i·​cate pän-ˈti-fi-kət 

-ˌkāt

: the state, office, or term of office of a pontiff

Did you know?

We hate to drone on, so we’ll give you the TL;DR on pontificate. In ancient Rome, a pontifex (plural pontifices) was a member of an important council of priests. With the rise of Catholicism, the title pontifex was transferred to the Pope and to Catholic bishops. From pontifex, by way of Medieval Latin, comes the English verb pontificate, which in the early 1800s meant “to officiate as a pontiff”—that is, as a bishop or Pope. (Note that the noun pontificate, which refers to the state, office, or term of office of a pontiff had been borrowed directly from Latin in the 15th century.) By the late 1800s, pontificate was also being used derisively for lay individuals who spoke as if they had the authority of a member of the clergy. To this day the word connotes an air of spurious superiority—one might consider this sense of pontificate to be the spiritual forerunner of mansplain.

Examples of pontificate in a Sentence

Verb

We had to listen to her pontificate about the best way to raise children.

Noun

He was elected to the pontificate last year.

during the pontificate of Pope John Paul II

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The Fed has also branched out into other areas beyond the money supply, pontificating on inequality, climate, race, and other issues. —The Editors, National Review, 22 Apr. 2025

The writer, so able to pontificate at length about ideas, struggles to untangle his feelings for both women. —Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Jan. 2025

Noun

The theme of fraternity ran through his entire pontificate with vibrant tones. —Abc News, ABC News, 26 Apr. 2025

Seen with eyes of faith, this pontificate becomes an invitation to mature. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Medieval Latin pontificatus, past participle of pontificare, from Latin pontific-, pontifex

Noun

Middle English, from Latin pontificatus, from pontific-, pontifex

First Known Use

Verb

1818, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for pontificate

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• accumulate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

pontificate

1 of 2 noun

pon·​tif·​i·​cate pän-ˈtif-i-kət 

-ˈtif-ə-ˌkāt

: the office or term of office of a pontiff

pontificate

2 of 2 verb

pon·​tif·​i·​cate pän-ˈtif-ə-ˌkāt 

pontificated; pontificating

: to speak pompously