Catholic Church
UK /ˈkæθ(ə)lɪk ˈt͡ʃɜːt͡ʃ/ · US /ˈkæθ(ə)lɪk ˈt͡ʃɝt͡ʃ/ noun
Forms Catholic Churches
- noun The Catholic Church, which consists of 24 particular churches in full communion with the Pope as the Bishop of Rome. “The Catholic Church is the largest Christian church, comprising almost half of all Christians in the world.”
- noun Literally "universal church", the whole body of Christendom, especially before the division into Western and Eastern churches.
- noun Any of the independent Catholic Churches, such as the Old Catholic Church, the Polish National Catholic Church, or the Orthodox Catholic Church.
- noun Any Christian denomination that identifies explicitly as "Catholic" based on its affirmation of the Nicene Creed, such as any of the Anglican Churches.
Synonyms
Sources: Wiktionary — from the Wiktionary entry “Catholic Church”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details