pope

noun

ˈpōp 

1

often Pope : a prelate who as bishop of Rome is the head of the Roman Catholic Church

2

: one that resembles a pope (as in authority)

3

a

: the Eastern Orthodox or Coptic patriarch of Alexandria

b

: a priest of an Eastern church

Examples of pope in a Sentence

The cardinals elected a new pope.

Recent Examples on the Web

Even the pope has warned that technology must serve humanity – and not the other way around. —Rachel Mural, The Conversation, 18 June 2026

The rift between the two leaders over the pope’s stance on the war was settled on the sidelines of the G7 in Evian, France, during a brief meeting this week. —Bloomberg, Chicago Tribune, 17 June 2026

In May, the pope’s older brother was invited to meet Trump in the Oval Office, where he was pictured with his wife standing and smiling next to the president and Vance. —Fernando Cervantes Jr, USA Today, 15 June 2026

The pope’s comments were widely interpreted as criticism of the Iran war—a conflict that Trump launched despite his vice president’s reservations. —Vivian Salama, The Atlantic, 15 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English pāpa, from Late Latin papa, from Greek pappas, papas, title of bishops, literally, papa

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for pope

• cope
• dope
• grope
• lope
• mope
• nope
• rope
• scope
• shope
• slope
• soap
• stope

Kids Definition

pope

noun

ˈpōp 

often capitalized

: the head of the Roman Catholic Church

Biographical Definition

Pope 1 of 2

biographical name (1)

ˈpōp 

Alexander 1688–1744 English poet

Popian

ˈpō-pē-ən 

adjective

or less commonly Popean

Pope

2 of 2

biographical name (2)

John 1822–1892 American general