Standard Lemma guide

catechesis

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • /ˌkætəˈkiːsɪs/

1

noun

Meaning 1

Religious instruction given orally to catechumens.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

oral religious instruction (as before baptism or confirmation)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: teaching, instruction, pedagogy

History

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin catēchēsis, itself borrowed from Ancient Greek κατήχησις (katḗkhēsis), from κατηχέω (katēkhéō, “sound through, instruct orally, catechise”).

Across languages

Translations

17 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 教理講授 /教理讲授 (jiàolǐ jiǎngshòu) — religious instruction
  • Dutch: catechese — religious instruction
  • Esperanto: kateĥizo — religious instruction
  • Esperanto: katekizo — religious instruction
  • French: catéchèse — religious instruction
  • Galician: catequese — religious instruction
  • German: Katechese — religious instruction
  • Hungarian: katekézis — religious instruction
  • Indonesian: katekese — religious instruction
  • Pali: sutamaya — religious instruction
  • Polish: katecheza — religious instruction
  • Portuguese: catequese — religious instruction
  • Romanian: cateheză — religious instruction
  • Russian: катехи́зис (katɛxízis) — religious instruction
  • Spanish: catequesis — religious instruction
  • Swahili: katekesi — religious instruction
  • Tagalog: katekesis — religious instruction