Dictionary

megachurch en · NOUN

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂s Proto-Hellenic *mégas Ancient Greek μέγᾰς (mégăs)der. English mega- Proto-Indo-European *ḱewh₁-der. Proto-Indo-European *ḱuh₁ryós Proto-Hellenic *kúrios Ancient Greek κῡ́ριος (kū́rios) Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Hellenic *-kos Ancient Greek -κός (-kós) Ancient Greek -ακός (-akós) Koine Greek κῡριακός (kūriakós)nom. Proto-Indo-European *-om Proto-Hellenic *-on Ancient Greek -ον (-on) Koine Greek κῡρῐᾰκόν (kūrĭăkón)bor. Proto-West Germanic *kirikā Old English ċiriċe Middle English chirche English church English megachurch From mega- + church.

Meanings

1. A church with an atypically large congregation.
   • 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:
   • 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:
   • 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:

Forms

Coordinates

superchurch · megamosque

Translations (11)

es megaiglesia (church with an atypically large congregation) · it megachurch (church with an atypically large congregation) · fr mégaéglise (church with an atypically large congregation) · fr mégachurch (church with an atypically large congregation) · de Megachurch (church with an atypically large congregation) · fr méga-église (church with an atypically large congregation) · de Megakirche (church with an atypically large congregation) · da megakirke (church with an atypically large congregation) · it megachiesa (church with an atypically large congregation) · fi megakirkko (church with an atypically large congregation) · fr megachurch (church with an atypically large congregation)