catholic

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈkæθəlɪk/ UK /ˈkæθəlɪk/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
broad in sympathies, tastes, or interests; universal

He has catholic tastes in music, from jazz to opera.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · broad in sympathies,... universal broad comprehensiveall-embracingeclectic wide liberal

Opposites

narrow parochial limited exclusive

Word family

Derived forms catholicitycatholicallycatholicism

Simplified etymology

Catholic came through Latin from Greek katholikos, meaning “universal.” The Greek word combines kata, “in respect of,” with holos, “whole,” giving the broader sense “all-embracing.”

Etymology

From Late Latin catholicus, from Greek katholikos ('universal, general'), from katholou ('on the whole'), from kata- ('according to') + holos ('whole').

katholikos Ancient Greek holos Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# catholic

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ˈkæθəlɪk/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈkæθəlɪk/

## Meanings
1. broad in sympathies, tastes, or interests; universal

## Examples
- He has catholic tastes in music, from jazz to opera.

## Synonyms
- universal
- broad
- comprehensive
- all-embracing
- eclectic
- wide
- liberal

## Antonyms
- narrow
- parochial
- limited
- exclusive

## Derived Forms
- catholicity
- catholically
- catholicism

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: katholikos
- Root: holos

## Etymology
From Late Latin catholicus, from Greek katholikos ('universal, general'), from katholou ('on the whole'), from kata- ('according to') + holos ('whole').

## AI Etymology
Catholic is from Late Latin catholicus, from Greek katholikos ('universal, general'), from katholou ('on the whole'), from kata- ('according to') + holos ('whole'). In present-day use, it means broad in sympathies, tastes, or interests; universal. Derived formations include catholicity, catholically, and catholicism.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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