as in ministerial
of, relating to, or characteristic of the clergy
majestically robed in priestly garments
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Recent Examples of priestly
The text records royal decrees including tax relief during poor Nile floods; donations to temples; the creation of a new priestly office; a festival tied to the heliacal rising of Sirius; and a calendar reform introducing a leap day every four years.
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Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 14 Sep. 2025
In 1997, Greenspan read an article in the Times about a group of geneticists who had tested the Y chromosomes of Jewish men who believed themselves to be part of an ancient priestly tradition called the cohanim.
—Jennifer Wilson, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025
The priestly fraternity, named in honor of the anti-modernist Pope St. Pius X, was founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre as a response to liturgical reforms made in the Second Vatican Council (also known as Vatican II).
—Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 14 Aug. 2025
One thing to consider, however, is that Leviticus is devoted to priestly concerns.
—Jacob F. Love, The Conversation, 5 Feb. 2025
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Recent Examples of Synonyms for priestly
Adjective
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Members of the transition are being accused of prioritizing their hold on power, and in some cases negotiate what critics describe as golden parachutes with cash payouts, ministerial appointments and immunity from charges of corruption.—
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Government and industry alignment To manage the program, South Korea recently set up an inter-ministerial coordination body bringing together defense, industry, and aviation authorities.—
Adjective
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Previous discoveries of cremations in Africa date to pastoral neolithic herders from 3,500 years ago or later food-producing societies with higher population densities, which made the discovery even more unexpected, the researchers said.—
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The Ford Complex brings British grandeur to a pastoral Georgia scene thanks to Neo-Gothic architecture inspired by Oxford University’s Christ Church College.—
Adjective
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Shia Islam’s clerical structure has historically been decentralized, with different ayatollahs, seminaries, and religious networks operating with considerable autonomy.—
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The protest comes amid ongoing unrest in Iran, where demonstrations that began over economic grievances have spread nationwide, evolving into a direct challenge to Iran's clerical leadership.—
Cite this Entry
“Priestly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/priestly. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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