noun · 4 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
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
UK:/ˌpɹɛz.bɪˈtɪə.ɹɪə.nɪ.zəm/
US:/ˌpɹɛz.bɪˈtɪɹ.iə.nɪ.zəm/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
1
noun
Meaning 1
That form of church government which invests presbyters with all spiritual power, and admits no prelates over them; also, the faith and polity of the Presbyterian churches, taken collectively.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
A form of Protestant Christianity based on Calvinism.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
A form of Christian church government characterized by rule by bodies of presbyters or elders.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
the doctrines and practices of the Presbyterian Church: based in Calvinism
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: Protestantism
History
Etymology
Etymology tree English presbyterian Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *-mós Ancient Greek -μός (-mós) Ancient Greek -ισμός (-ismós)der. English -ism English presbyterianism From presbyterian + -ism.
Across languages
Translations
42 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Basque:
presbiterianismo
— form of Protestantism
Belarusian:
прэсвітарыянства
(presvitaryjanstva)
— form of Protestantism
Bulgarian:
презвитериа́нство
(prezviteriánstvo)
— form of Protestantism
Catalan:
presbiterianisme
— form of Protestantism
Chinese Mandarin:
長老宗 /长老宗
(chánglǎozōng)
— form of Protestantism
Chinese Mandarin:
長老會 /长老会
(zhǎnglǎohuì)
— form of Protestantism
Czech:
presbyteriánství
— form of Protestantism
Danish:
presbyterianisme
— form of Protestantism
Dutch:
presbyterianisme
— form of Protestantism
Esperanto:
presbiteriismo
— form of Protestantism
Estonian:
presbüterlus
— form of Protestantism
Finnish:
presbyterismi
— form of Protestantism
French:
presbytérianisme
— form of Protestantism
Georgian:
პრესვიტერიანობა
(ṗresviṭerianoba)
— form of Protestantism
German:
Presbyterianismus
— form of Protestantism
Greek:
πρεσβυτεριανισμός
(presvyterianismós)
— form of Protestantism
Hungarian:
presbiterianizmus
— form of Protestantism
Indonesian:
Presbiterianisme
— form of Protestantism
Irish:
Preispitéireachas
— form of Protestantism
Italian:
presbiterianesimo
— form of Protestantism
Japanese:
長老派教会
(chōrōha kyōkai)
— form of Protestantism
Japanese:
長老派
(chōrōha)
— form of Protestantism
Japanese:
長老教
(chōrōkyō)
— form of Protestantism
Kazakh:
пресвитериандық
(presviteriandyq)
— form of Protestantism
Korean:
장로교
(jangnogyo)
— form of Protestantism
Latvian:
prezbiteriānisms
— form of Protestantism
Lithuanian:
presbiterionizmas
— form of Protestantism
Macedonian:
презвитеријанство
(prezviterijanstvo)
— form of Protestantism
Norwegian Bokmål:
presbyterianisme
— form of Protestantism
Norwegian Nynorsk:
presbyterianisme
— form of Protestantism
Polish:
prezbiterianizm
— form of Protestantism
Portuguese:
presbiterianismo
— form of Protestantism
Romanian:
presbiterianism
— form of Protestantism
Russian:
пресвитериа́нство
(presvitɛriánstvo)
— form of Protestantism
Serbo-Croatian:
презвитеријанство
— form of Protestantism
Serbo-Croatian:
prezbiterijanstvo
— form of Protestantism
Slovak:
presbyterianizmus
— form of Protestantism
Slovene:
prezbiterijanstvo
— form of Protestantism
Spanish:
presbiterianismo
— form of Protestantism
Swedish:
presbyterianism
— form of Protestantism
Ukrainian:
пресвітеріа́нство
(presviteriánstvo)
— form of Protestantism
