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priestly

English · Thesaurus

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priestly¹

  • /ˈpɹiːstli/

Rhymes with -iːstli

Where it comes from

From Middle English prestly; equivalent to priest + -ly.

adjective more priestly · priestlier · most priestly · priestliest

  1. Of or relating to priests.
  2. Having the appearance of or resembling a priest.

Similar: hieratic, sacerdotal

Priestly²

Where it comes from

Variant of Priestley.

proper noun Priestlys

  1. A habitational surname from Old English.

Priestly³

Where it comes from

Semantic loan from German priesterlich and Priesterschrift (“Priestly source”, literally “priest document”), so called because of the reconstructed source’s emphasis on cultic issues. See priestly.

adjective more Priestly · most Priestly

  1. not comparable, usually Pertaining to the Priestly source (“P”), one of the sources of the Torah or Pentateuch according to the documentary hypothesis. Thus we continue to meet the new Priestly expression, “you (they) shall know that I am Yahweh” […]

Thesaurus

adjective

Similar: hieratic, sacerdotal

Translations

Every language

adj of or relating to priests

Deutschpriesterlich

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Cite this
MLA

"priestly." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/priestly. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

priestly. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/priestly

Chicago

"priestly." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/priestly.

BibTeX
@misc{priestly_2026,
  title = {priestly},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/priestly},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}