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ceremonial Definition

cer·emo·nial (ser′ə mō′nē əl)

adjective

of, for, or consisting of ceremony; ritual; formal

noun

  1. an established system of rites or formal actions connected with an occasion, as in religion; ritual
  2. a rite or ceremony

ceremonial Related Forms
cer′·emo′·ni·al·ism′ noun cer′·emo′·ni·al·ist noun cer′·emo′·ni·ally adverb
ceremonial Synonyms

ceremonial

modif.

ritual, formal, solemn, stately; see conventional 2.

ceremonial Usage Examples

Preposition: of

  • installation: His high position was indicated by special ceremonials of installation, dress and the exercise of political as well as of spiritual functions.

Adjective modifier

  • religious: It was a religious act specifically undertaken to achieve the ritual purity required for participation in religious ceremonials.
  • great: Here the ancestral shrines were located and the great state ceremonials and rituals took place.
  • other: These feasts, like other ceremonials and rituals, help to overcome the tedium of everyday life.

Modifies a noun

  • robe: The ceremonial robes are of bright red silk, with the badge on the left breast.
  • mace: The city's ceremonial mace, now on display in the Guildhall Museum, dates from that year.
  • dagger: It is a blunt, ceremonial dagger worn with Highland Dress.
  • procession: DI Michael joined a ceremonial procession through the grand squares of Sir Christopher Wren's baroque masterpiece on the banks of the Thames.
  • sword: Bronze figure of a Benin style soldier with ceremonial shaped sword held up in right hand, left hand over belly.
  • occasion: The Piper of the Alamo I T WAS a solemn, ceremonial occasion.

Modifying Another Word

  • purely: In this situation the role of the Queen herself is of course purely ceremonial.
  • largely: The status of ' prince bishop ' was formally removed in 1835, having long been largely ceremonial.
  • merely: As far as the Queen herself is concerned this is far from a merely ceremonial occasion.
  • mostly: Unfortunately, in Jack's opinion, the meeting had consisted of mostly ceremonial crap.
  • mainly: The British Sovereign today plays a mainly ceremonial role in the running of the country.
  • primarily: One possible layout is shown in the artist's reconstruction of the fort, showing the triangle as primarily ceremonial.

Noun used with modifier

  • graduation: The minutes of the special meetings and graduation ceremonials on 5 December 2001 were taken as read and approved.
  • state: Here the ancestral shrines were located and the great state ceremonials and rituals took place.
ceremonial Quotes

If the President has a bully pulpit, then the First Lady has a white glove pulpit†more refined, restricted, ceremonial, but it's a pulpit all the same.

—Reagan, Nancy