Adjacent Words

Catholic definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CATHOLIC, a.
1. Universal or general; as the Catholic church. Originally this epithet was given to the Christian church in general, but is now appropriated to the Romish church, and in strictness there is no Catholic church, or universal Christian communion. The epithet is sometimes set in opposition to heretic, sectary or schismatic.
2. Liberal; not narrow minded, partial or bigoted; as a catholic man.
3. Liberal; as catholic principles.
Catholic epistles, the epistles of the apostles which are addressed to all the faithful, and not to a particular church.
CATHOLIC, n. A papist.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: of or relating to or supporting Catholicism; "the Catholic Church"
2: free from provincial prejudices or attachments; "catholic in one's tastes" n
1: a member of a Catholic church

Merriam Webster's

adjective Etymology: Middle English catholik, from Middle French & Late Latin; Middle French catholique, from Late Latin catholicus, from Greek katholikos universal, general, from katholou in general, from kata by + holos whole — more at cata-, safe Date: 14th century 1. a. often capitalized of, relating to, or forming the church universal b. often capitalized of, relating to, or forming the ancient undivided Christian church or a church claiming historical continuity from it c. capitalized Roman Catholic 2. comprehensive, universal; especially broad in sympathies, tastes, or interests <a catholic taste in music> • catholically adverb • catholicize verb

Merriam Webster's

noun Date: 15th century 1. a person who belongs to the universal Christian church 2. a member of a Catholic church; especially Roman Catholic

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. & n. --adj. 1 of interest or use to all; universal. 2 all-embracing; of wide sympathies or interests (has catholic tastes). 3 (Catholic) a of the Roman Catholic religion. b including all Christians. c including all of the Western Church. --n. (Catholic) a Roman Catholic. Derivatives: catholically adv. Catholicism n. catholicity n. catholicly adv. Etymology: ME f. OF catholique or LL catholicus f. Gk katholikos universal f. kata in respect of + holos whole

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Catholic Cath"o*lic (k[a^]th"[-o]*[i^]k), a. [L. catholicus, Gr. kaqoliko`s, universal, general; kata` down, wholly + "o`los whole, probably akin to E. solid: cf. F. catholique.] 1. Universal or general; as, the catholic faith. Men of other countries [came] to bear their part in so great and catholic a war. --Southey. Note: This epithet, which is applicable to the whole Christian church, or its faith, is claimed by Roman Catholics to belong especially to their church, and in popular usage is so limited. 2. Not narrow-minded, partial, or bigoted; liberal; as, catholic tastes. 3. Of or pertaining to, or affecting the Roman Catholics; as, the Catholic emancipation act. Catholic epistles, the epistles of the apostles which are addressed to all the faithful, and not to a particular church; being those of James, Peter, Jude, and John.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Catholic Cath"o*lic, n. 1. A person who accepts the creeds which are received in common by all parts of the orthodox Christian church. 2. An adherent of the Roman Catholic church; a Roman Catholic. Old Catholic, the name assumed in 1870 by members of the Roman Catholic church, who denied the ecumenical character of the Vatican Council, and rejected its decrees, esp. that concerning the infallibility of the pope, as contrary to the ancient Catholic faith.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(Catholics) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. The Catholic Church is the branch of the Christian Church that accepts the Pope as its leader and is based in the Vatican in Rome. ...the Catholic Church. ...Catholic priests. ...the Catholic faith. ADJ: usu ADJ n see also Anglo-Catholic 2. A Catholic is a member of the Catholic Church. At least nine out of ten Mexicans are baptised Catholics. N-COUNT 3. If you describe a collection of things or people as catholic, you are emphasizing that they are very varied. He was a man of catholic tastes, a lover of grand opera, history and the fine arts. = wide ADJ

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. a. 1. Universal, general, world-wide. 2. Liberal, tolerant, unbigoted, unsectarian, unexclusive. 3. Roman Catholic, Romish, papal. II. n. Papist, Roman Catholic.

Moby Thesaurus

all-comprehending, all-comprehensive, all-covering, all-embracing, all-encompassing, all-filling, all-including, all-inclusive, all-pervading, allover, broad, broad-gauged, broad-minded, catholicon, comprehensive, cosmic, cosmopolitan, country-wide, cure-all, eclectic, ecumenic, ecumenical, ecumenistic, elixir, extensive, galactic, general, generic, global, heaven-wide, inclusive, indeterminate, international, large-scale, liberal, national, nondenominational, noninsular, nonsectarian, nostrum, planetary, spacious of mind, total, unbigoted, unfanatical, unhidebound, universal, unparochial, unprovincial, wide, wide-minded, widespread, world-wide, worldwide