variants
or less commonly baptise
baptized also baptised; baptizing also baptising
1
religion
: to administer baptism (see baptism sense 1) to
baptize a child in the Episcopal Church
was baptized a Catholic as an infant
2
a
: to purify or cleanse spiritually especially by a purging (see purge entry 1 sense 1) experience or ordeal
… baptized with pain and rapture, tears and fire …—
Sidney Lanier
Sidney Lanier
b
: initiate
Both developments were baptized under last season's conditions of scanty snow …—New York Times
New York Times3
: to give a name to (as at baptism) : christen
They baptized their son "John" after the baby's grandfather.
: to administer baptism
baptizer
noun
Synonyms
Examples of baptize in a Sentence
The priest baptized the baby.
She was baptized at the age of 20.
Recent Examples on the Web
In Trump, Evangelicals have found a candidate who allows them, encourages them even, to baptize their prejudices against immigrants, against the LGBTQ+ communities, fomenting a movement of hatefulness, all in the name of God.
—Donovan McAbee, TIME, 28 Oct. 2024
Arguing its case for the casino in court documents, Scotts Valley noted that one of the most important ancestors of the present-day band, Chief Augustine, was baptized at a mission a short distance from Vallejo in Sonoma.
—Tyrone Beason, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2024
Adams served an early board member at the Democratic mainstay's civil rights organization, the National Action Network, and was baptized by Sharpton last March in a ceremony at the Rikers Island jail complex.
—Dan Morrison, USA TODAY, 30 Sep. 2024
The descendance from slavery, according to them, baptized the real inheritors of the Black condition.
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 7 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for baptize 
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Donovan McAbee, TIME, 28 Oct. 2024
Arguing its case for the casino in court documents, Scotts Valley noted that one of the most important ancestors of the present-day band, Chief Augustine, was baptized at a mission a short distance from Vallejo in Sonoma.
—Tyrone Beason, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2024
Adams served an early board member at the Democratic mainstay's civil rights organization, the National Action Network, and was baptized by Sharpton last March in a ceremony at the Rikers Island jail complex.
—Dan Morrison, USA TODAY, 30 Sep. 2024
The descendance from slavery, according to them, baptized the real inheritors of the Black condition.
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 7 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for baptize
Dictionary Entries Near baptize
Cite this Entry
“Baptize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/baptize. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
baptize
verb
bap·tize
bap-ˈtīz 
ˈbap-ˌtīz
baptized; baptizing
1
: to dip in water or sprinkle water on as a part of the ceremony of receiving into the Christian church
2
a
: to make pure in spirit (as by a painful experience)
3
: to give a name to (as in the ceremony of baptism) : christen
baptizer
noun
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