DIOCESAN Synonyms: 84 Similar and Opposite Words

diocesan 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of diocesan

as in episcopal

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

diocesan

2 of 2

noun

as in bishop

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

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 diocesan

Adjective

Overall, diocesan officials said 1,059 people are expected to enter the Catholic Church in the Chicago diocese this year, up from 696 in 2025, a 52% increase. — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 5 Apr. 2026 By sitting in this throne, the archbishop claims the role of diocesan bishop of Canterbury, the chief pastor of the local diocese. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 25 Mar. 2026 As was typical of the national pattern in the United States, the diocesan bishops and local clergy in Pittsburgh were dominated by the Irish. — Paula Kane, The Conversation, 13 Mar. 2026 The attackers entered the diocesan health center late Friday night, killing patients in their beds and setting the facility ablaze. — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 17 Nov. 2025 Forsyth said diocesan officials will continue to talk to church members to determine what needs to be done to reopen. — Dan Horn, Cincinnati Enquirer, 12 Nov. 2025 Johnston wrote that the Bright Futures Fund was brought into the diocesan accounting system and was under the regular oversight of its finance office. — Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 6 Nov. 2025

Noun

The first is the strikingly Gothic diocesan throne, which sits in the cathedral choir and dates from the Victorian era. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 25 Mar. 2026 The diocesan website includes a statement from Dallas Bishop Edward Burns connecting the need for social distancing with the story of the Good Samaritan. — David Tarrant, Dallas News, 6 Apr. 2020 In the Catholic Church, this is generally a time of the year when dioceses ask their members to donate to annual bishops’ Lenten appeals, which fund diocesan operations. — Nicholas Rowan, Washington Examiner, 22 Mar. 2020 Their database contains many clergy who don’t appear on official diocesan lists and so aren’t in our database. — Ellis Simani, ProPublica, 3 Feb. 2020 The Vatican has been under increasing pressure to cooperate more with law enforcement, and its failure to do so has resulted in unprecedented raids in recent years on diocesan chanceries by police from Belgium to Texas to Chile. — Fox News, 18 Dec. 2019 The Vatican has been under increasing pressure to cooperate more with law enforcement, and its failure to do so has resulted in unprecedented raids in recent years on diocesan chanceries by police from Belgium to Texas and Chile. — NBC News, 17 Dec. 2019 Insurers have covered a large portion of settlements reached in previous diocesan bankruptcy cases, a 2018 study by Penn State professor Marie Reilly found, with victims receiving an average award of $371,500. — CBS News, 23 Sep. 2019

Recent Examples of Synonyms for diocesan

Adjective

After returning to the United States, Novakovic attended an Episcopal boarding school in San Antonio, Texas.

— byRachel Cole, Encyclopedia Britannica, 20 May 2026
On New Year’s Eve in 1996, Christou followed Deadbeat with a club at a former Episcopal church that was built in 1865.

— Max Scheinblum, Denver Post, 26 Feb. 2026

Definition of episcopal

Noun

Man of books and learning Several of the videos show Athanasius of Alexandria, a fourth-century bishop and theologian traditionally considered one of the church fathers.

— Denva Gallant, The Conversation, 8 July 2026
Juan José Gerardi Conedera (born December 27, 1922, Guatemala City, Guatemala—killed April 26, 1998, Guatemala City) was a Guatemalan Roman Catholic bishop and human rights activist.

— Britannica Editors, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 July 2026

Definition of bishop

Adjective

The last few weeks have shown his governing style and a remarkable run of papal decision-making where Leo has set the agenda, rather than merely fulfill the appointments set by his predecessor.

— Nicole Winfield, Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2026
Leo is spending the rest of July at the papal retreat at Castel Gandolfo, the Vatican’s historic summer residence south of Rome that the American pope has turned into his weekly getaway for tennis and swimming.

— Nicole Winfield, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026

Definition of papal

Noun

Saint Agnes, a historic church founded for German-speaking immigrants in what’s now a diverse, central neighborhood in Minnesota’s capital, offers one traditional Latin Mass per weekend, with the archbishop’s permission.

— ABC News, ABC News, 3 July 2026
William Warham, the archbishop of Canterbury, called for more copies to be bought up and burned.

— Michael Bruening, The Conversation, 30 June 2026

Definition of archbishop

Adjective

On June 2, 1979, Pope John Paul II set out from Rome on an apostolic journey, as papal trips away from the Vatican are called.

— Paul Elie, New Yorker, 8 May 2026
The leader of the Roman Catholic Church directed his remarks to university students at the Catholic University of Central Africa in Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon, during an 11-day apostolic journey in Africa.

— Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 21 Apr. 2026

Definition of apostolic

Noun

On July 2, the Vatican decreed the excommunication of the SSPX’s bishops and priests, one day after the group consecrated four new bishops in Switzerland without the pope’s consent.

— Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 13 July 2026
Long at odds with the Vatican, the order delivered by the pope meant excommunication for the newly consecrated, any SSPX priest and any person who formally adheres to the society.

— Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 6 July 2026

Definition of pope

Adjective

Leo opened his visit to Pompeii by meeting with sick and disabled people who are cared for by a charity center affiliated with the sanctuary, which Leo’s namesake, Pope Leo XIII, declared a pontifical basilica in 1901.

— ABC News, ABC News, 8 May 2026
That public spat has overshadowed his pontifical tour of four African countries, which ended Thursday with a Mass for thousands of people in Malabo, the former capital of Equatorial Guinea.

— Claudio Lavanga, NBC news, 23 Apr. 2026

Definition of pontifical

Noun

The group was founded in 1970 in Switzerland by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, a French prelate, but five years later was officially suppressed by the Bishop of Fribourg.

— Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 30 June 2026
In roughly 33 hours over the course of two days, the diverse group of international prelates elected Prevost on the fourth ballot.

— Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2026

Definition of prelate

Browse Nearby Words

dints

diocesan

diocesans

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Diocesan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/diocesan. Accessed 20 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of diocesan

adjective

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

raffish

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

Popular in Wordplay

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?

Popular

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

Games & Quizzes