megachurch

M3E1G2A1C3H4U1R1C3H4

noun

A church with an atypically large congregation.

RareScrabble 23

Meanings

nounmegachurch (plural megachurches)

plural megachurches · alternative mega-church

  1. A church with an atypically large congregation.

    The pastor told CNN on Tuesday that no members of his megachurch have contracted the virus. MacArthur also said he doubted the accuracy of California’s coronavirus numbers.

    2020 August 12, Daniel Burke, “California church defies public health orders, holds indoor services for thousands with no social distancing”, in CNN
    2 more examples

    This American style of religion has begun to spread around the world through the efforts of what the authors call pastorpreneurs, who have modeled themselves on their American counterparts, building megachurches and entrepreneurial empires.

    2009 March 31, Michiko Kakutani, “Almighty Empire With a Global Reach”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 27 Jan 2018

    Millions of Americans fell in love with the prosperity gospel and its new kind of preacher. Charming though not effusive, polished but not slick, these favored few could as easily have appeared on Piers Morgan Tonight as behind their megachurch Sunday pulpits.

    2013, Kate Bowler, Blessed: A History of the American Prosperity Gospel, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 5

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*méǵh₂s
  2. Proto-Hellenic*mégas
  3. Ancient Greekμέγᾰς (mégăs)
  4. Englishmega-
  5. Proto-Indo-European*ḱewh₁-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*ḱuh₁ryós
  7. Proto-Hellenic*kúrios
  8. Ancient Greekκῡ́ριος (kū́rios)
  9. Koine Greekκῡριακός (kūriakós)
  10. Koine Greekκῡρῐᾰκόν (kūrĭăkón)
  11. Proto-West Germanic*kirikā
  12. Old Englishċiriċe
  13. Middle Englishchirche
  14. Englishchurch
  15. Englishmegachurch

From mega- + church.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Danish megakirke
  • megakirkechurch with an atypically large congregation
Finnish megakirkko
  • megakirkkochurch with an atypically large congregation
French megachurch, mégachurch
  • megachurchchurch with an atypically large congregation
  • mégachurchchurch with an atypically large congregation
  • mégaéglisechurch with an atypically large congregation
  • méga-églisechurch with an atypically large congregation
German Megakirche, Megachurch
  • Megakirchechurch with an atypically large congregation
  • Megachurchchurch with an atypically large congregation
Italian megachurch, megachiesa
  • megachurchchurch with an atypically large congregation
  • megachiesachurch with an atypically large congregation
Spanish megaiglesia
  • megaiglesiachurch with an atypically large congregation
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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