Meanings
pilate1
comparative more pilate · superlative most pilate
Pilate2
- biblicalPontius Pilate, the man who, according to the Bible, ordered the crucifixion of Jesus.
I was 'round when Jesus Christ / Had his moment of doubt and pain / Made damn sure that Pilate / Washed his hands and sealed his fate
1968, Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, “Sympathy for the Devil”, in Beggars Banquet, performed by Rolling Stones
Synonyms & antonyms
nounthe Roman procurator of Judea who ordered that Jesus be crucified (died in AD 36)
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- LatinPīlātus“a Roman cognomen”
- EnglishPilate
The surname is from Latin Pīlātus (“a Roman cognomen”, literally “armed with javelins”), from pīlum (“javelin, pestle”), of unknown ultimate origin.
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek Πιλᾶτος
- Πιλᾶτος (Pilâtos)Pontius Pilate
Arabic بِيلَاطُس
- بِيلَاطُس (bīlāṭus)Pontius Pilate
Chinese Cantonese 彼拉多
- 彼拉多 (bei² laai¹ do¹)Pontius Pilate
Chinese Mandarin 彼拉多
- 彼拉多 (Bǐlāduō)Pontius Pilate
Czech Pilát
- PilátPontius Pilate
Dutch Pilatus
- PilatusPontius Pilate
French Pilate
- PilatePontius Pilate
German Pilatus
- PilatusPontius Pilate
Greek Πιλάτος
- Πιλάτος (Pilátos)Pontius Pilate
Hindi पिलातुस
- पिलातुस (pilātus)Pontius Pilate
Hungarian Pilátus
- PilátusPontius Pilate
Icelandic Pílatus
- PílatusPontius Pilate
Indonesian Pilatus
- PilatusPontius Pilate
Italian Pilato
- PilatoPontius Pilate
Latin Pilatus
- PilatusPontius Pilate
Persian پیلاطس
- پیلاطس (pilâtos)Pontius Pilate
Polish Piłat, Poncjusz Piłat
- PiłatPontius Pilate
- Poncjusz PiłatPontius Pilate
Portuguese Pilatos
- PilatosPontius Pilate
Romanian Pilat
- PilatPontius Pilate
Russian Пила́т
- Пила́т (Pilát)Pontius Pilate
Spanish Pilato
- PilatoPontius Pilate
Swedish Pilatus
- PilatusPontius Pilate
Turkish Pilatus
- PilatusPontius Pilate
Vietnamese Philatô, Phi-lát
- PhilatôPontius Pilate
- Phi-látPontius Pilate
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with pilate
All rhymes →Sounds the same
Anagrams
Cite this entry
pilate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pilate
“pilate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pilate. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pilate,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pilate.
Source: pilate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.