Christlike

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Showing the qualities of Jesus Christ, especially his selflessness, compassion, patience and forgiveness toward others
2. Behaving in a manner that recalls the gentleness, humility and love associated with the founder of Christianity
3. Having the character or spirit of Jesus, marked by deep kindness, self-sacrifice and willingness to forgive

Etymology: "Christlike" is about as transparent as English compounds get: it joins "Christ" to the suffix "-like," which means "resembling" or "having the character of." The combination produces an adjective for anything that resembles Jesus, most often in his qualities of compassion, humility, and self-sacrifice rather than in his physical appearance. The construction is a native English one. "-like" is an Old English suffix (from "gelic," "similar") that has been attached to nouns for over a thousand years to form adjectives such as "godlike," "childlike," and "lifelike." Christlike follows that pattern exactly, so the word needs no special explanation beyond its two parts.

Synonyms: saintly, godly, angelic, holy, divine

Antonyms: devilish, satanic, ungodly, unholy, sinful