• Bishop

    Pronunciation

    • IPA: /ˈbɪʃəp/

    Origin 1

    From Middle English bishop, bisshop, bischop, biscop, from Old English biscop ("bishop"), from British Latin *biscopo or Vulgar Latin biscopus, from classical Latin episcopus ("overseer, supervisor"), from Ancient Greek ἐπίσκοπος (episkopos, "overseer"), from ἐπί (epi, "over") + σκοπός (skopeō, "watcher"), used in Greek and Latin both generally and as a title of civil officers. Cognate with all European terms for the position in various Christian churches (see below); compare bisp.

    Alternative forms

    Full definition of bishop

    Noun

    bishop

    (plural bishops)
    1. (Christianity) An overseer of congregations, either (in the New Testament) generally speaking or (Eastern Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism, &c.) an official in the church hierarchy (actively or nominally) governing a diocese, supervising the church's priests, deacons, and property in its territory.

    Usage notes

    Generally speaking, Christian churches observe their highest positions—popes, patriarchs, archbishops, &c.—as specially-empowered bishops; thus the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church is the Bishop of Rome, while the Pope of the Coptic Church is nominally bishop of Alexandria though resident in Cairo. In several denominations, the charism of a laying on of hands is believed to introduce new bishops to an unbroken apostolic succession initiated by the Holy Ghost at the Pentecost described in the 2nd chapter of the Book of Acts.

    Traditionally, the rank of bishop has been restricted to men and many denominations continue this practice. Even denominations permitting the marriage of priests (such as Eastern Orthodoxy) typically require complete celibacy from those promoted to bishophood: owing to traditional aversions to divorce, this usually restricts the rank to single men and widowers. Catholic bishops are also priests; Eastern Orthodox bishops are usually (but not always) monks.

    Related terms

    Synonyms

    Hyponyms

    church official, supervisor of priests and congregations

    Holonyms

    Derived terms

    church official, supervisor of priests and congregations
    African weaverbirds

    Verb

    1. (Christianity) To act as a bishop, to perform the duties of a bishop, (especially but now dialectical) to confirm another's membership in the church.
      • circa 1000 Thorpe's Laws, II. 348 (Bosw.)Se bisceop biþ gesett... to bisceopgenne cild.
      • circa 1315, Shoreham, 5Wanne the bisschop, bisschopeth theTokene of marke he set on the.
      • 1622, W. Yonge, Diary (1848), 50The Marquis of Buckingham and his wife were both bishopped, or confirmed by the Bishop of London.
      • 1655, T. Fuller, Church-hist. Brit., ix. 81Harding and Saunders Bishop it in England.
      • 1971, Keith Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, Folio Society 2012, p. 35:Here too physical effects were vulgarly attributed to the ceremony… as evidenced by the case of the old Norfolk woman who claimed to have been ‘bishopped’ seven times, because she found it helped her rheumatism.
      1. (by extension, jocularly, obsolete) To confirm (in its other senses).
        • 1596, W. Warner, Albions Eng., x. liv. 243Why sent they it by Felton to be bishoped at Paules?
        • 1700, John Dryden translating Boccaccio's Cymon & Iphigenia in Fables, 550He.., chose to bear The Name of Fool confirm'd, and Bishop'd by the Fair.
    2. (Christianity) To make a bishop.
      • 1549, H. Latimer, 2nd Serm. before Kynges Maiestie, 5th Serm. sig. PvivThys hathe bene often tymes... sene in preachers before they were byshoppyd or benificed.
      • 1861 November 23, Sat. Rev., 537There may be other... matters to occupy the thoughts of one about to be bishopped.
    3. (Christianity, rare) To provide with bishops.
      • 1865 December 6, Daily Telegraph, 5/3Italy would be well bishoped if her episcopacy... did not exceed fifty-nine.
    4. (UK, dialectical) To permit food (esp. milk) to burn while cooking (from bishops' role in the inquisition or as mentioned in the quote below, of horses).
      • ante 1536, Tyndale, Works, 166 (T.)If the porage be burned to, or the meate ouer rosted, we say the bishop hath put his foote in the potte or the bishop hath played the cooke, because the bishops burn who they lust and whosoever displeaseth them.
      • 1641, John Milton, Animadversions, 9It will be as bad as the Bishops foot in the broth.
      • 1738, Jonathan Swift, Compl. Coll. Genteel Conversat., 10The Cream is burnt to.Betty. Why, Madam, the Bishop has set his Foot in it.
      • 1863, E. C. Gaskell, Sylvia's Lovers, I. 64She canna stomach it if it's bishopped e'er so little.
      • 1875, Lanc. Gloss., 40Th' milk's bishopped again!
    5. (by extension, of horses) To make a horse seem younger, particularly by manipulation of its teeth.
      • 1727, R. Bradley, Family Dict. at "Horse"This way of making a Horse look young is... called Bishoping.
      • 1788, Francis Grose, A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue 2nd ed.Bishopped, or To bishop. A term among horÅ¿e dealers, for burning the mark into a horÅ¿e's tooth, after he has loÅ¿t it by age... It is a common Å¿aying of milk that is burnt to, that the biÅ¿hop has fet his foot in it. Formerly, when a biÅ¿hop paÅ¿Å¿ed through a village, all the inhabitants ran out of their houÅ¿es to Å¿olicit his bleÅ¿Å¿ing, even leaving their milk, &c. on the fire, to take its chance; which, when burnt to, was Å¿aid to be biÅ¿hopped.
      • 1840, E. E. Napier, Scenes & Sports Foreign Lands, I. v. 138I found his teeth had been filed down and bishoped with the greatest neatness and perfection.

    Derived terms

    Origin 2

    Eponymous, from the surname Bishop.

    Verb

    1. (UK, colloquial, obsolete) To murder by drowning.
      • 1840, R.H. Barham, Some Account of a New Play in Ingoldsby Legends 1st series, 308I Burked the papa, now I'll Bishop the son.
      • 1870, Walter Thornbury, Old Stories Re-toldThere were no more Burking murders until 1831, when two men, named Bishop and Williams, drowned a poor 14-year-old Italian boy in Bethnal Green, and sold his body to the surgeons.
      • 2002, Helen Smith, Grave-Robbers, Cut-throats, and Poisoners of London, 66John Bishop and another grave-robber called Thomas Williams had drowned the boy, a woman and another boy in a well in John Bishop's garden in Bethnal Green... Bishop and Williams were hanged outside Newgate Prison in December 1831 in front of an angry crowd of 30,000.
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