1
as in rural
of, relating to, associated with, or typical of open areas with few buildings or people
painted a pastoral scene of a flower-filled meadow
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ministerial
of, relating to, or characteristic of the clergy
pastoral advice to a young couple preparing to marry
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in pastorale
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pastoral
Joanne M. Pierce, The Conversation, 27 May 2025
His pastoral work and multicultural background resonated with Pope Francis, who brought Prevost to the Vatican in 2023.
—Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 May 2025
Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2024
For those who make the trek, the week will be filled with events ranging from the pastoral to the glamourous to the overtly highbrow.
—Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 25 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for pastoral
Adjective
The new order grew and eventually expanded across Western Europe, becoming involved in preaching and other kinds of pastoral work in several countries.
—Joanne M. Pierce, The Conversation, 27 May 2025
His pastoral work and multicultural background resonated with Pope Francis, who brought Prevost to the Vatican in 2023.
—Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 May 2025
Noun
Science emerges as a version of the pastoral, with the physicist as swain.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2024
For those who make the trek, the week will be filled with events ranging from the pastoral to the glamourous to the overtly highbrow.
—Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 25 July 2024
See All Example Sentences for pastoral
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pastoral
Adjective
-
In 2024, even though Democratic nominee Kamala Harris easily won the small, rural state over President Donald Trump, voters ousted more than two dozen Democratic legislators.—
David Mark,
The Washington Examiner,
13 June 2025
-
Families also relied on unemployment and disability: nearly 40 percent of rural men Sherman interviewed between twenty-one and sixty-four were on disability, nearly twice the rate in the state.—
Joan C. Williams
June 13,
Literary Hub,
13 June 2025
Adjective
-
The opening of federal work following the Civil Rights Movement provided an alternative to manual labor, teaching or ministerial work in the form of white-collar jobs and skills training that many took into private sector jobs.—
J. David McSwane,
ProPublica,
4 June 2025
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Wilders’ announcement that his PVV party will be leaving the coalition means that any party members holding ministerial positions in the cabinet will leave, while remaining ministers from three other parties will continue as part of a caretaker cabinet.—
Callum Sutherland,
Time,
3 June 2025
Noun
-
But the idyll of her dreams bring her closer to the abyss.—
Samantha Bergeson,
IndieWire,
13 May 2025
-
The point seems to be the act itself: sitting in nude serenity among family, friends and strangers, safe in the bone-deep sense of trust that such an idyll both requires and reinforces.—
Julia Whelan Emma Kehlbeck Jeremy McLennan,
New York Times,
2 May 2025
Noun
-
Bulgakov’s novel The White Guard, published in 1925 and set at the same time, is an elegy for Tsarist Kyiv that detests both Ukrainian national aspirations and Bolshevik rule.—
Uilleam Blacker,
The Atlantic,
4 June 2025
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And then on March 29, Swift published an elegy for Partridge.—
Jesse David Fox,
Vulture,
1 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The funeral of Pope Francis began with a short musical chant and psalm spoken in Latin after an open Book of the Gospels had been placed on top of Pope Francis’ closed coffin carried by pallbearers from inside St. Peter’s and placed on a red carpet on the edge of the church steps.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
26 Apr. 2025
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Fronted by the Swiss Guard, cardinals and other church leaders led the slow procession into the sunlit esplanade as a male choir chanted psalms and prayers in Latin and the great bells of the basilica tolled.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
23 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
This is a lovely fundraiser to assist in the preservation of the cemetery, and the day is filled with master gardeners offering advice, madrigals singing, an archaeology talk, refreshments, kids’ activities and lots of lovely spring plants for sale.—
Janet Kusterer,
Baltimore Sun,
25 Mar. 2025
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The service and concert will take place at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 5, at the church, 815 S. Washington St. Castle Singers are vocalists who perform a variety of chamber repertoire, varying from Renaissance madrigals and motets to contemporary pop and vocal jazz.—
Aurora Beacon-News,
Chicago Tribune,
4 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The 2025 French Open Final between world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and No. 2 Coco Gauff was nothing short of an epic.—
Jenn Nelson,
Forbes.com,
7 June 2025
-
Expanding the song’s world of stray thoughts and heartbreak totems while expertly navigating the story’s twists and turns, Swift turned a for-the-fans album cut into an authoritative epic.—
Jason Lipshutz,
Billboard,
3 June 2025
Noun
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The one-of-a-kind road-going hypercar is an ode to the Count Rossi Porsche 917 and will be on display at Le Mans.—
Erik Shilling,
Robb Report,
6 June 2025
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The perfect ode to prickly pear and fields of flowers is in Ilio by Diptyque.—
Meghan Rose,
Glamour,
4 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pastoral.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pastoral. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.
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