Calvinism

C3A1L1V4I1N1I1S1M3
/ˈkæl.vɪ.nɪ.zəm/

noun

The Christian religious tradition based upon the doctrines and forms of Christian practice of several Protestant reformers, especially John Calvin, in contrast to Catholicism, Lutheranism, Anabaptism, and Arminianism. One distinctive trait of the system is its Augustinian doctrine of predestination, which teaches that God has elected some for salvation, apart from anything they do or believe.

Similar
Reformed traditionReformed faithReformed religionReformed Christianity
OriginFrench calvinisme →
UncommonScrabble 16
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Meanings

nounCalvinism (countable and uncountable, plural Calvinisms)

plural Calvinisms

  1. countableuncountableThe Christian religious tradition based upon the doctrines and forms of Christian practice of several Protestant reformers, especially John Calvin, in contrast to Catholicism, Lutheranism, Anabaptism, and Arminianism. One distinctive trait of the system is its Augustinian doctrine of predestination, which teaches that God has elected some for salvation, apart from anything they do or believe.

    Synonyms: Reformed tradition, Reformed faith, Reformed religion, Reformed Christianity

Synonyms & antonyms

nounThe Christian religious tradition based upon the doctrines and forms of Christian practice of several Protestant reformers, especially John Calvin, in contrast to Catholicism, Lutheranism, Anabaptism, and Arminianism. One distinctive trait of the system is its Augustinian doctrine of predestination, which teaches that God has elected some for salvation, apart from anything they do or believe.

Similar
Reformed traditionReformed faithReformed religionReformed Christianity

Origin

  1. Frenchcalvinisme
  2. EnglishCalvinism

From French calvinisme, equivalent to Calvin + -ism.

More words from French

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Basque kalbinismo
  • kalbinismoChristian religious tradition
Bulgarian калвинизъм
  • калвинизъм (kalvinizăm)Christian religious tradition
Catalan calvinisme
  • calvinismeChristian religious tradition
Chinese Mandarin 加爾文主義 /加尔文主义
  • 加爾文主義 /加尔文主义 (Jiā'ěrwén zhǔyì)Christian religious tradition
Czech kalvinismus
  • kalvinismusChristian religious tradition
Danish calvinisme
  • calvinismeChristian religious tradition
Dutch calvinisme
  • calvinismeChristian religious tradition
Esperanto kalvinismo
  • kalvinismoChristian religious tradition
Estonian kalvinism
  • kalvinismChristian religious tradition
Finnish kalvinismi
  • kalvinismiChristian religious tradition
French calvinisme
  • calvinismeChristian religious tradition
German Calvinismus, Kalvinismus
  • CalvinismusChristian religious tradition
  • KalvinismusChristian religious tradition
Greek καλβινισμός
  • καλβινισμός (kalvinismós)Christian religious tradition
Hungarian kálvinizmus
  • kálvinizmusChristian religious tradition
Icelandic kalvínstrú
  • kalvínstrúChristian religious tradition
Indonesian Kalvinisme
  • KalvinismeChristian religious tradition
Italian calvinismo
  • calvinismoChristian religious tradition
Japanese カルビン主義
  • カルビン主義 (Karubin-shugi)Christian religious tradition
Latin Calvinismus
  • CalvinismusChristian religious tradition
Latvian kalvinisms
  • kalvinismsChristian religious tradition
Lithuanian kalvinizmas
  • kalvinizmasChristian religious tradition
Norwegian Bokmål kalvinisme
  • kalvinismeChristian religious tradition
Polish kalwinizm
  • kalwinizmChristian religious tradition
Portuguese calvinismo
  • calvinismoChristian religious tradition
Romanian calvinism
  • calvinismChristian religious tradition
Russian кальвини́зм
  • кальвини́зм (kalʹvinízm)Christian religious tradition
Slovak kalvinizmus
  • kalvinizmusChristian religious tradition
Spanish calvinismo
  • calvinismoChristian religious tradition
Swedish kalvinism
  • kalvinismChristian religious tradition
Turkish Kalvinizm
  • KalvinizmChristian religious tradition
Ukrainian кальвіні́зм
  • кальвіні́зм (kalʹvinízm)Christian religious tradition
Welsh Calfiniaeth
  • CalfiniaethChristian religious tradition
Cite this entry
APA

Calvinism. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Calvinism

MLA

“Calvinism.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Calvinism. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Calvinism,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Calvinism.

Source: Calvinism on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.