Byzantine

1 of 2

adjective

Byz·​an·​tine ˈbi-zᵊn-ˌtēn How to pronounce Byzantine (audio)
ˈbī-,
-ˌtīn;
bə-ˈzan-ˌtēn,
bī-ˈzan- How to pronounce Byzantine (audio)
1
: of, relating to, or characteristic of the ancient city of Byzantium
Byzantine art
2
architecture : of, relating to, or having the characteristics of a style of architecture developed in the Byzantine Empire especially in the fifth and sixth centuries featuring the dome carried on pendentives over a square and incrustation with marble veneering and with colored mosaics on grounds of gold
3
Christianity : of or relating to the churches using a traditional Greek rite and subject to Eastern (see eastern sense 2) canon law
4
often not capitalized
a
: of, relating to, or characterized by a devious and usually surreptitious manner of operation
a Byzantine power struggle
b
: intricately involved : labyrinthine
rules of Byzantine complexity

Byzantine

2 of 2

noun

: a native or inhabitant of Byzantium

Did you know?

Byzantine, a Word for History Buffs

Today, the city that lies on the Bosporus Strait in Turkey is named Istanbul, but it was once known as Constantinople (a name given to it when it became the capital of the Eastern Roman, or Byzantine, Empire), and in ancient times, it was called Byzantium. Its history is exotic—filled with mystics, wars, and political infighting—and over time the word Byzantine (from Late Latin Byzantinus, the name for a native of Byzantium) became synonymous with anything characteristic of the city or empire, from architecture to intrigue. The figurative sense referring to a devious manner of operation first appeared in the late 1930s. It was popularized by frequent use in reference to the Soviet Union, whose secrecy and despotism were equated by Westerners with what went on in the old Byzantine Empire.

Examples of Byzantine in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
The walls of the historical church feature intricate mosaics and the Pala d'Oro, a Byzantine altar is made from garnets, amethysts, sapphires, emeralds and hundreds of other precious gemstones. Gabriele Regalbuto, Fox News, 6 Mar. 2024 There was a time when there were no Byzantine ticket structures where some fares included seat selection, and others barred you from choosing your location on the plan in advance, or at least from doing so for free. Zach Wichter, USA TODAY, 14 Feb. 2024 There is one bougainvillea-shaded taverna, which shares the village square with a tiny Byzantine chapel, decorated with magnificent 14th-century frescoes. New York Times, 25 Jan. 2024 The coins dated back to the Greek and Byzantine period, nearly 2,000 years ago. Caitie Kelly Kin Woo Kate Guadagnino Nicole Demarco Megan O’Sullivan, New York Times, 25 Jan. 2024 The unique Byzantine mosaics remain covered and unseen. Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Jan. 2024 Nearby, there are Byzantine remains in the hilltop city Veria, and superb wineries such as Kir-Yianni in the rolling hills around Naousa. Thessaloniki — the region’s capital and Greece’s second city — is a gastro hub as well as a mishmash of architectural and archaeological eras. Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 2 Jan. 2024 The bombing has damaged Byzantine churches and ancient mosques, factories and apartment buildings, shopping malls and luxury hotels, theaters and schools. Jared Malsin and Saeed Shah, WSJ, 30 Dec. 2023 At Central Saint Martins, I was obsessed with Byzantine icons. Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 18 Dec. 2023
Noun
This remarkably romantic walled town is a stony museum of Byzantine, Ottoman, and Venetian history dating back to the 13th century. Rick Steves, Chicago Tribune, 30 Jan. 2024 In the east, the chart shows the remnants of the Crusader strongholds and the final throes of the Byzantine Empire. Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 25 Oct. 2023 The phantom time hypothesis goes something like this: The Holy Roman Emperor Otto III conspired with Pope Sylvester II (and quite possibly the Byzantine Emperor Constantine VII as well) to doctor the dating system. Benjamin Plackett, Discover Magazine, 4 Oct. 2023 Feinstein often spent the autumn high holidays in the gold-domed, Byzantine Revival synagogue — one of the oldest in California and among the largest in the U.S. — usually sitting three rows back from the front, Singer said. Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2023 The Eastern Empire, which was always stronger, continued as the Byzantine Empire, which broke up in the Middle Ages. Caitlin O'Kane, CBS News, 22 Sep. 2023 The Doge's Palace, in Piazza San Marco, is a building that was influenced by 500 years of architecture, from Byzantine to Eastern European and Asian to Roman Classical, and those ideas are layered over a lot of periods of construction. Emily Zemler, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 Sep. 2023 In the 1860s, Russian imperial thinkers began to promote the old sixteenth-century idea that Moscow was the successor of Rome and Constantinople as the center of world Christianity, the legitimate heir to the Byzantine Empire, and the last Christian kingdom, and thus bore a messianic destiny. Andrei Kolesnikov, Foreign Affairs, 22 Aug. 2023 In one piazza, a sign points to the Byzantine Road, laid a thousand years ago and leading down to the port of Piso Livadi. Andrew Sean Greer, Travel + Leisure, 12 Aug. 2023

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

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1651, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1651, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Byzantine was in 1651

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Dictionary Entries Near Byzantine

Cite this Entry

“Byzantine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Byzantine. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

Byzantine

1 of 2 noun
Byz·​an·​tine ˈbiz-ən-ˌtēn How to pronounce Byzantine (audio) bə-ˈzan- How to pronounce Byzantine (audio)
ˈbīz-ən-;
ˈbiz-ən-ˌtīn
: a person born or living in Byzantium or in the Byzantine Empire

Byzantine

2 of 2 adjective
1
: of, relating to, or typical of Byzantium or the Eastern Roman Empire
2
: of or relating to a style of architecture developed in the Byzantine Empire especially in the 5th and 6th centuries characterized by a central dome over a square space and by much use of mosaics
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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