pastoral

1 of 2

adjective

pas·​to·​ral ˈpa-st(ə-)rəl How to pronounce pastoral (audio)
 nonstandard  pa-ˈstȯr-əl
1
a(1)
: of, relating to, or composed of shepherds or herdsmen
a pastoral people, seminomadic in their habitsJ. M. Mogey
(2)
: devoted to or based on livestock raising
a pastoral economy
b
: of or relating to the countryside : not urban
a pastoral setting
c
: portraying or expressive of the life of shepherds or country people especially in an idealized and conventionalized manner
pastoral poetry
a pastoral symphony
d
: pleasingly peaceful and innocent : idyllic
pastoral dreams were shattered by the year's round of … unwelcome visitors, ruinous floods and procrastinating workmenBetty Fussell
2
a
: of or relating to spiritual care or guidance especially of a congregation
pastoral counseling
b
: of or relating to the pastor of a church
pastoral duties
pastorally adverb
pastoralness noun

pastoral

2 of 2

noun

pas·​to·​ral ˈpa-st(ə-)rəl How to pronounce pastoral (audio)
sense 1d is often
ˌpa-stə-ˈräl How to pronounce pastoral (audio) -ˈral How to pronounce pastoral (audio)
plural pastorals
1
a
: a literary work (such as a poem or play) dealing with shepherds or rural life in a usually artificial manner and typically drawing a contrast between the innocence and serenity of the simple life and the misery and corruption of city and especially court life
b
: pastoral poetry or drama
c
: a rural picture or scene
2
3
: a letter of a pastor to a charge: such as
a
: a letter addressed by a bishop to the bishop's diocese
b
: a letter of the house of bishops of the Protestant Episcopal Church to be read in each parish

Examples of pastoral in a Sentence

Adjective The house is situated in a charming pastoral setting. Her favorite painting in the collection is a pastoral landscape. The bishop outlined the church's views in a pastoral letter.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Generally, Pope Francis has been appointing people who are pastoral and are concerned about the poor, Reese said, rather than seeking out people who are theologically progressive. Sophie Carson, Journal Sentinel, 12 Mar. 2024 Housed in a 1904 lakefront mansion near Tuxedo Park and boasting 40,000 square feet, The Ranch Hudson Valley sits on 200 acres and immerses its guests in the region’s famously pastoral environment. Dobrina Zhekova, Travel + Leisure, 5 Mar. 2024 Nestled within the pastoral town of Chilmark, one of New England’s priciest ZIP codes, the sprawling contemporary compound has a whopping 11 bedrooms and 13 bathrooms split between the main house and two additional residences, including a writer’s cottage. Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 28 Feb. 2024 In the quiet pastoral countryside north of London sits a small custom Porsche restoration shop called Theon Design. Michael Van Runkle, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024 East Baltimore artists began painting screens with elaborate pastoral scenes that allowed homeowners to look out and for those on sidewalks and streets not to be able to see inside homes. Frederick N. Rasmussen, Baltimore Sun, 15 Feb. 2024 Fans can expect technology, the military and helicopters in the normally pastoral world. Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 7 Feb. 2024 Today, these pastoral nomads live mostly in the high mountains surrounding Barrancas del Cobre and still practice their traditional customs. Meagan Drillinger, Travel + Leisure, 11 Feb. 2024 These pastoral nomads would often travel long distances searching for green pastures and food for their livestock, which included goats, sheep, yaks and cattle, and survived through hunting and moving with the seasons. Laura Kiniry, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Feb. 2024
Noun
Segarra’s voice has soft edges but a hard center, befitting songs in which outrage and pain simmer beneath the pastoral. Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 23 Feb. 2024 Call it a pastoral, but its true theme is human connection. Sandhya Kambhampati, Los Angeles Times, 12 Dec. 2023 As in all pastorals, there is an element of fantasy in these serene depictions, which portray a world partly remembered from Constable’s childhood and partly invented from the conventions of art history, in this case the carefully balanced landscapes of Nicolas Poussin and Claude Lorrain. Christopher Benfey, The New York Review of Books, 14 Sep. 2023 In Row’s vision of the Trump era, there is no American pastoral to return to, long for, or even to mourn; there is only the hope of escape and of freedom from illusions. Laura Tanenbaum, The New Republic, 17 May 2023 If nature is made secondary to human will, as in classical and Enlightenment times, then a care for nature expresses itself in bucolics and pastorals—nature as a setting for human amorousness or agriculture. Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 20 Feb. 2023 But the unprovoked military invasion of the Russian army destroyed this pastoral. Yuriy Zaliznyak, ABC News, 7 Mar. 2023 The work is not a simple illustration but melds the personal with the fantastical, the pastoral with the profane. Dallas News, 13 Jan. 2022 Instead of an invasion, the archaeological evidence revealed a gradual evolution from a pastoral to an agricultural society. Pamela Weintraub, Discover Magazine, 1 Oct. 2015

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pastoral.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective and Noun

Middle English, from Latin pastoralis, from pastor herdsman

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Noun

1584, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of pastoral was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near pastoral

Cite this Entry

“Pastoral.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pastoral. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

pastoral

1 of 2 adjective
pas·​to·​ral ˈpas-t(ə-)rəl How to pronounce pastoral (audio)
1
a
: of or relating to shepherds or rural life
b
: devoted to or based on livestock raising
2
: of or relating to the pastor of a church

pastoral

2 of 2 noun
pas·​to·​ral
ˈpas-t(ə-)rəl,
 sense 3 is often  ˌpas-tə-ˈräl,
-ˈral
1
: a literary work dealing with shepherds or rural life
2
: a rural picture or scene
3

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