What does anathematize mean?
Anathematize means to condemn someone or something solemnly and formally — originally by pronouncing a curse, particularly within a religious context. The word derives from the Greek 'anathema', meaning a thing devoted to evil or set apart for destruction, which entered Latin and then the European languages as a term for formal ecclesiastical condemnation. To anathematize someone, in its strictest historical sense, was to cast them out of the Church and deliver them spiritually to perdition; councils and popes anathematized heretics, and entire congregations could be placed under anathema. In modern usage the verb retains this gravity even when applied outside religion: writers and speakers use it to describe vehement, almost ritualistic denunciation of ideas, practices, or people. It is a formal, dramatic word — rarely heard in casual conversation — best suited to contexts where condemnation carries ceremonial weight or intense moral force.
verbTo curse or denounce someone or something formally, especially by an official ecclesiastical decree; more broadly, to condemn vehemently.
- To pronounce a formal curse or condemnation upon someone, especially by ecclesiastical authority.
- To denounce or revile someone or something vehemently.
"The medieval council anathematized the heretic, formally expelling him from the Church."
"In 1054, the patriarch of Constantinople was anathematized by papal legates in a schism that split East from West."
"Victorian moralists would anathematize any novelist whose work they deemed corrupting to young readers."
When the medieval Church anathematized you, it wasn't just disapproval — it was a formal curse delivered with the full weight of canon law.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of anathematize
Anathematize comes from the Greek 'anathematizein', derived from 'anathema' — a thing set up or devoted, later meaning something devoted to destruction or divine curse. The term passed through Ecclesiastical Latin into English, appearing in the early modern period (around the late 16th to early 17th century) as religious controversy intensified in post-Reformation Europe. Its cognate 'anathema' remains common in English today, retaining both the sense of a formal curse and, more loosely, something intensely disliked.
Related word forms
How anathematize is actually used
Formal and elevated register; rare in everyday speech. The ecclesiastical sense is historically dominant, while the broader sense of vehement denunciation appears mostly in literary or rhetorical contexts.
Easily confused with anathematize
Excommunication formally expels someone from a religious community's membership, while anathematizing is a solemn cursing or condemnation that may accompany but is not identical to expulsion.