Etymologically
Log in

apostolic

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 1 November 2026 at 03:14. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˌæp.əˈstɒl.ɪk/[1]
  • US: /ˌæp.əˈstɑːl.ɪk/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English apostolik,[2][3] borrowed from Old French apostolique and directly borrowed from Ecclesiastical Latin apostolicus,[4][5][6][7] from Ancient Greek ἀποστολικός (apostolikós),[7][8][6] formed from ἀπόστολος (apóstolos, “messenger”), the source of apostle, with the suffix that gives English -ic.[8][7][9] The Middle English Dictionary takes the word from Latin.[2] The Anglo-Norman apostolique, "apostolic, papal", is recorded from 1400–01.[10] The longer form apostolical is also recorded from the early 15th century.[6][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of the apostles, in the phrase the apostolic church: about 1225, in a Middle English version of the Nicene Creed.[2] Merriam-Webster dates the word to the 13th century,[3] Etymonline to the early 15th century,[6] and the OED to 1477, in Caxton, in the sense "papal".[7]

Semantic evolution

In Middle English the word already meant both "of the apostles" and "papal", since the pope was seen as the successor of Saint Peter.[2][7] From 1549, in the Book of Common Prayer, it is recorded for what belongs to the apostles or their time, as in the Apostolic Fathers, and in Coverdale's translation of Erasmus for what befits an apostle.[7] As a noun, from 1580, it named members of religious groups that tried to imitate the apostles,[7] and Merriam-Webster also uses it for a member of an Apostolic church.[3] Collins and Merriam-Webster also give the sense "in keeping with the teaching of the apostles".[11][3]

Timeline

  • c. 1225 – of the apostles, in the apostolic church.[2]
  • 1477 – papal, in Caxton.[7]
  • 1549 – belonging to the apostles or contemporary with them; befitting an apostle.[7]
  • 1580 – noun, a member of a group imitating the apostles.[7][3]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Of, relating to or dating from the Apostles or their time: the apostolic age.[11][3][7]
  2. In keeping with the teaching or practice of the apostles: apostolic zeal.[11][3]
  3. Of or relating to the pope as successor of the apostles; papal: an apostolic decree.[11][3][7]

Noun

  1. A member of an Apostolic church, or of a group that seeks to imitate the apostles.[3][7]

Word family

  • apostolicity
  • apostolically
  • nonapostolic
  • apostolic age
  • apostolic church
  • apostolic father
  • apostolic see
  • apostolic succession

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Kurath, Hans; Kuhn, Sherman M.; Lewis, Robert E., eds. (1952–2001), Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; online edition ed. Frances McSparran et al. (2000–2018)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  8. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  9. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  10. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
  11. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins