church

Definition of churchnext
1
as in temple
a building for public worship and especially Christian worship a city that is noted for its many historic churches

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in congregation
a body of persons gathered for religious worship spoke to the whole church at once

Synonyms & Similar Words

3
as in clergy
the group ordained to perform clerical functions in the Christian church a time when few young men seem to want to join the church

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of church Today, exactly one hundred years since the architect’s death, Pope Leo XIV visited the iconic basilica to celebrate a Mass and inaugurate the tower which makes the church the tallest in the world. Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 10 June 2026 The church audit discovered that several retail store purchases totaling $5,906 had been charged to the church’s credit card account, the affidavit said. Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 10 June 2026 In 1976, the residence was redesigned as a retirement home for church missioners. George Avalos, Mercury News, 10 June 2026 Debate has persisted on where to draw the line regarding churches with women serving in assistant pastoral or preaching roles. ABC News, 10 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for church
Recent Examples of Synonyms for church
Noun
  • Participants also experience sites like the Grand Palace, Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles, Mae Fa Luang Botanical Garden, and Wat Phra Kaew (the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand).
    Beth Luberecki, USA Today, 6 June 2026
  • Nancy Higginbotham/Facebook Higginbotham was on a family tracking app while his parents and brother visited a nearby temple.
    Anna Coren, CBS News, 4 June 2026
Noun
  • During the service, the priest encouraged members of the congregation to share the sign of peace.
    Susan Page, USA Today, 29 May 2026
  • Originally a Presbyterian church, the structure was expanded in the 1950s with an annex to accommodate a growing congregation.
    Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 28 May 2026
Noun
  • Shaped by the anticlerical violence of the country’s 1936-1939 civil war, the church has dealt more recently with a credibility crisis over revelations of decades of clergy abuse and cover-up.
    ABC News, ABC News, 6 June 2026
  • Others are subsidiaries of conglomerates, known as bonyads, that answer to the clergy.
    Bozorgmehr Sharafedin, The Atlantic, 1 June 2026
Noun
  • There is a heated salt-water swimming pool, vast gardens and terraces, and a boat house, as well as a separate farmhouse, chapel, a private vineyard, an olive grove and orchards with apricot and plum trees.
    Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 10 June 2026
  • The property also contains a commercial kitchen, main and guest dining room, a large chapel and sacristy, an assembly room, administrative offices, conference rooms, a laundry room, a barber shop, a woodworking shop, a multipurpose room and a maintenance shop, the brochure states.
    George Avalos, Mercury News, 10 June 2026
Noun
  • Grassroots associations have made sure the posters of the disappeared are visible even at tourist sites, including outside a 17th century cathedral and on bollards at a central roundabout featuring a Roman goddess statue where Mexican soccer fans often celebrate.
    Bloomberg, Mercury News, 4 June 2026
  • Visitors can enjoy traditional dance and music (including choir concerts inside the cathedral), cathedral tours, cooking demos and tributes.
    John Wenzel, Denver Post, 4 June 2026
Noun
  • Built in 1892, the gospel tabernacle once was home to the Grand Ole Opry radio show from 1943 to 1974.
    USA TODAY Network, USA Today, 10 June 2026
  • In the corner of one of Amsterdam's most elegant 17th-century canal houses, a cheetah leaps from an antique tabernacle.
    Karen Burshtein, Time, 12 Mar. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Church.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/church. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.

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