Byzantine.
Of or pertaining to Byzantium.
Meaning & usage
Of or pertaining to Byzantium.
Belonging to the civilization of the Eastern Roman Empire between 331, when its capital was moved to Constantinople, and 1453, when that capital was conquered by the Turks and ultimately renamed Istanbul.
Of a style of architecture prevalent in the Eastern Empire down to 1453, marked by the round arch springing from columns or piers, the dome supported upon pendentives, capitals elaborately sculptured, mosaic or other encrustations, etc.
Overly complex or intricate, especially of bureaucracy.
a Byzantine system of regulations
Rigid, unceasing, inflexible.
Devious and stealthy.
Of or relating to the Byzantine Rite or any of the many Eastern Orthodox churches and Greek Catholic churches that use this rite for their liturgical celebrations.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰuǵ-der. Thracian *būzasder. Ancient Greek Βῡ́ζᾱς (Bū́zās) Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Ancient Greek -ῐος (-ĭos)? Ancient Greek -ῐον (-ĭon) Ancient Greek Βῡζᾰ́ντῐον (Būzắntĭon)bor. Latin Bȳzantium Proto-Indo-European *-nós Proto-Indo-European *-iHnos Proto-Italic *-īnos Latin -īnus Late Latin bȳzantīnusder. English Byzantine Borrowed from Late Latin bȳzantīnus, from Bȳzantium, from Ancient Greek Βυζάντιον (Buzántion). The figurative senses evoke the reputation for palace intrigue of the Byzantine imperial court.
A native of Byzantium (modern-day Istanbul) or of the Byzantine empire
Alternative form of byzantine (coin)
A dark, metallic shade of violet.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *bʰuǵ-der. Thracian *būzasder. Ancient Greek Βῡ́ζᾱς (Bū́zās) Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Ancient Greek -ῐος (-ĭos)? Ancient Greek -ῐον (-ĭon) Ancient Greek Βῡζᾰ́ντῐον (Būzắntĭon)bor. Latin Bȳzantium Proto-Indo-European *-nós Proto-Indo-European *-iHnos Proto-Italic *-īnos Latin -īnus Late Latin bȳzantīnusder. English Byzantine Borrowed from Late Latin bȳzantīnus, from Bȳzantium, from Ancient Greek Βυζάντιον (Buzántion). The figurative senses evoke the reputation for palace intrigue of the Byzantine imperial court.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.