ordained; ordaining; ordains
1
: to invest (see invest entry 2 sense 1) officially (as by the laying on of hands) with ministerial or priestly authority
was ordained as a priest
2
a
: to establish or order by appointment, decree, or law : enact
we the people … do ordain and establish this Constitution—
U.S. Constitution
U.S. Constitution
b
: destine, foreordain
It is futile to try to avoid what destiny has ordained.
: to issue an order
so the gods have ordained
ordainer
noun
Synonyms
Examples of ordain in a Sentence
She is an ordained minister.
The process was ordained by law.
Recent Examples on the Web
Many religious communities don’t allow them to be ordained as pastors, bishops or priests.
—John Blake, CNN, 15 July 2024
To be fair, maybe the ordained don’t have too many chances to hone their dating skills.
—Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 18 May 2024
The most famous among them was Hollywood star Jayne Mansfield, who LaVey ordained.
—Alex Bhattacharji, Rolling Stone, 4 Aug. 2024
Jonestown was the agricultural settlement that the Peoples Temple and Jones created in 1974, a decade after he was ordained.
—Haley Van Horn, Peoplemag, 17 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for ordain 
John Blake, CNN, 15 July 2024
To be fair, maybe the ordained don’t have too many chances to hone their dating skills.
—Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 18 May 2024
The most famous among them was Hollywood star Jayne Mansfield, who LaVey ordained.
—Alex Bhattacharji, Rolling Stone, 4 Aug. 2024
Jonestown was the agricultural settlement that the Peoples Temple and Jones created in 1974, a decade after he was ordained.
—Haley Van Horn, Peoplemag, 17 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for ordain
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ordain.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near ordain
Cite this Entry
“Ordain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ordain. Accessed 18 Sep. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
ordain
verb
or·dain
ȯr-ˈdān 
1
: to make a person a Christian minister or priest by a special ceremony
2
a
: decree entry 2
it was ordained by law
b
: destine sense 1
we seem ordained to fail
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