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Glite Dictionary
cardinalate

cardinalate

9.9
A group of senior Roman Catholic leaders who advise and choose the pope
  • noun
  • Formal
translation icon : cardenalato
  • Upon his appointment, he officially joined the cardinalate, gaining significant influence within the church.

Examples

  • Many cardinals aspire to reach the cardinalate due to its prestigious nature in the Catholic Church.

  • A poem by Filippo Beroaldo the Younger addressed to Rangone on the occasion of his elevation to the cardinalate praised his new honors, but at the same time reminded him of the poor moral context.

    Academic text (2006)

  • Carlo Rezzonico was raised to the cardinalate privately on Sept. 11, 1758, publicly on Oct. 2; see Moroni (as in n. 3), s.v.

    Academic text (1995)

  • The cardinalate plays a crucial role in electing the pope during a conclave.

Synonyms

College of Cardinals
vscardinalate
  • Formal
3 7.1

A group of Catholic cardinals who elect and advise the pope

includes the institutional rank and office meaning as well as the group
Sacred College of Cardinals
vscardinalate
9.7

A group of senior Catholic church leaders who elect and advise the pope

emphasizes the office or rank aspect rather than only the group
Sacred College
vscardinalate
9.6

A group of cardinals in the Catholic Church who elect and advise the Pope

stresses the office and rank side beyond the formal group role
cardinalship
vscardinalate
  • Formal
9.9

The position of a senior Catholic church leader who advises the Pope and elects Popes

refers to the collective body and its institutional rank rather than one person

Surface Forms

cardinalate singular
cardinalates plural

Morphology

cardinalate = cardinal (semi-transparent) = cardinal + ate

Formed by 'cardinal' + the noun-forming suffix '-ate' meaning an office or collective body; the ecclesiastical sense is specialized and may not be obvious to all learners.

Etymology

Cardinalate comes from cardinal (from the Latin cardo 'hinge', used to mean 'main' or 'chief') and the ending -ate, which often means an 'office' or a 'group' of people. So the cardinalate is the office or body of the church's main officials, the cardinals.