ecumenical

IPA/ˌekjuːˈmenɪkl/
KK[ˌɛkjumˈɛnɪkəl]IPA/ˌekjuːˈmenɪkl/

ecumenical — adjective

  • ecumenicalpositive
  • more ecumenicalcomparative
  • most ecumenicalsuperlative

1. relating to efforts by different Christian groups to work together, understand e

1.adjectiveC1
Definition

relating to efforts by different Christian groups to work together, understand each other, and become more united across their traditional divides.

Example

Local churches held an ecumenical service during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

ecumenical + service/noun: ecumenical event type

Bishop Meera has spent twenty years working on ecumenical dialogue between Protestant and Catholic communities.

ecumenical + dialogue: collaborative discussion between denominations

Common collocations
  • ecumenical service
  • ecumenical council
  • ecumenical dialogue
  • ecumenical movement
  • ecumenical relations
  • ecumenical gathering
Synonyms
  • interdenominational

    emphasises cooperation across specific denominations rather than the ideal of full unity

  • nonsectarian

    broader — avoids any sectarian label, not necessarily aimed at unity

Antonyms
  • sectarian

    focused on a single denomination rather than seeking broad Christian unity

Grammar Patterns

ecumenical + noun

Usage Note

Not comparable — ecumenical describes a category or quality, not a degree. Frequently appears before nouns such as service, council, dialogue, movement, and relations.

Common Mistakes

The church held a ecumenical meeting.
The church held an ecumenical meeting.
'ecumenical' begins with a vowel sound, so it takes 'an', not 'a'.

2. covering or affecting the whole world or people everywhere, rather than being li

2.adjectiveC2
Definition

covering or affecting the whole world or people everywhere, rather than being limited to one region or group.

Example

The pandemic revealed ecumenical challenges that no single country could solve by itself.

ecumenical + challenges: broad, worldwide issues

An ecumenical approach to climate change must involve governments and scientists on every continent.

Common collocations
  • ecumenical vision
  • ecumenical approach
  • ecumenical scope
  • ecumenical challenges
Synonyms
  • universal

    more common and less formal; focuses on applicability to all rather than breadth of coverage

  • worldwide

    more concrete and neutral; lacks the intellectual or unifying nuance of ecumenical

  • global

    the everyday equivalent; ecumenical in this sense is far more formal

Antonyms
  • parochial

    narrow in outlook, limited to a small area or concern

  • provincial

    limited or narrow in perspective, especially compared to a global view

Grammar Patterns

ecumenical + noun

Usage Note

This sense is considerably rarer than the Christian-unity sense. It carries a formal, sometimes philosophical tone. Not comparable. In modern writing it is used most often in academic or intellectual contexts to describe a perspective that aims to be global rather than provincial.

Word family

  • ecumenism
    nounC1
  • ecumenist
    nounC2
  • ecumenically
    adverbC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Ecumenical, interdenominational, and nonsectarian all relate to cooperation across group boundaries, but they differ in scope and goal. Ecumenical specifically refers to efforts to promote unity among Christian churches — it carries a theological and institutional weight that the other two lack. Interdenominational is more practical: it describes events, programmes, or organisations that involve members of different denominations without necessarily aiming for structural unity. A choir that draws singers from three churches is interdenominational; a formal dialogue about merging those churches is ecumenical. Nonsectarian is the broadest of the three — it means 'not aligned with any particular sect' and is common in education (a nonsectarian school admits students of any faith). Ecumenical is also used in a rare, intellectual sense meaning 'worldwide in scope', whereas the other two never carry that meaning.

ecumenical ↗interdenominationalnonsectarian

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • ecumenical movement
  • ecumenical council
  • ecumenical dialogue
  • ecumenical service

Etymology

GreekLatinEnglish

From Late Latin oecūmenicus, from Greek oikoumenikos 'of the whole inhabited world', from oikoumenē gē 'the inhabited world'. The Greek word derives from oikein 'to inhabit', from oikos 'house, dwelling'. The Christian-unity sense arose in the 1800s as churches began formal discussions about reuniting across denominations.

First known use

1587

1587, in the meaning defined at sense 2