ordained

[awr-deynd]

adjective

1. having been invested with ministerial, priestly, or rabbinical functions.

   Today’s lecturer is an ordained rabbi and a Talmudic scholar.

2. having been decreed, appointed, or formally established by some authority.

   If questioned, I will invoke my constitutionally ordained right to avoid incriminating myself.

3. having been destined or predestined.

   Cortez believed himself the ordained conqueror of the Aztec Empire.

noun

1. Usually the ordained a person or persons who have been invested with ministerial, priestly, or rabbinical functions, or the category of those so invested.

   Christian leaders, especially the ordained, are expected to reflect and model the faith which they profess and teach.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of ordain.

Other Word Forms

• self-ordained adjective
• unordained adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of ordained¹

ordain ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

By 1991, the Diocese of Sheffield had fast-tracked Brain's route to the priesthood, allowing him to become ordained after just two years, instead of the usual four.

From BBC

Thirteen of those congregations were in the North Texas area, including Mercy Culture, where Schatzline was ordained a pastor in 2024.

From Salon

An ordained minister, he conducted Mr Croft's funeral.

From BBC

The diocese released a list of 63 clergy and lay people accused in 2021, including ordained priests as early as 1906.

From Los Angeles Times

After graduating from the University of Texas, he earned a master’s in divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and became an ordained minister.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• appointed 

When To Use

What does ordained mean?

Ordained is an adjective that means having gained official status as a priest, minister, or other religious authority through a sanctioned process.Ordained is also the past tense of the verb ordain, meaning to invest someone with such authority. It has several other more general meanings, including to order, command, decree, or destine. The process or ceremony in which a priest or minister is ordained is called ordination.Example: Only an ordained minister can perform the ceremony.