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cardinal

cardinal (Catholic church official)

noun adjective kar-dee-NAL Rare

Also means

cardinal (bird or compass direction)

Usage Note

Cardinal as a noun refers to a prince of the Catholic Church ranking just below the Pope. As an adjective, it means 'of primary importance' — les points cardinaux are the four compass points (north, south, east, west). The plural is cardinaux for both noun and adjective uses.

Examples

"Le cardinal a prononcé un sermon émouvant."

Natural Translation

The cardinal delivered a moving sermon.

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