pontiff

The pope.

A bishop.

A pontifex.

In Roman antiquity, a chief priest: same as pontifex, 1.

A Jewish high priest.

Eccles., a bishop; especially, the Bishop of Rome, as the head of the church; the Pope. Also called the supreme pontiff.

One of the sacred college, in ancient Rome, which had the supreme jurisdiction over all matters of religion, at the head of which was the Pontifex Maximus.

The chief priest.

The pope.