Word.ws English Dictionary

cisalpine

Syllables: cis·alp·ine/sɪsˈælpaɪn/US/ˌsɪsˈælpaɪn/

cisalpine adjective: on this side of the Alps (chiefly the south side where Rome is located). Also the alternative letter-case form of Cisalpine.

Adjective (1)

cisalpine (not comparable)

  1. On this side of the Alps (chiefly the south side where Rome is located).
    • [T]he ſaid floud of Rubicon diſſeuereth the Galle Ciſalpine from Italie.1564 February, Erasmus, “The Saiynges of Iulius Caesar”, in Nicolas Udall [i.e., Nicholas Udall], transl., Apophthegmes, that is to Saie, Prompte, Quicke, Wittie and Sentẽcious Saiynges, […], London...
    • How I had been robbed in the valley, I informed the Senators, who told me that, in very truth, the people of that side were bad livers, and naturally theevish, whereby I perceived well, that as we have with us the Countreys cisalpine and transalpine, that is, behither and beyond the mountains, so...1653, Francis Rabelais [i.e., François Rabelais], translated by [Thomas Urquhart, Peter Anthony Motteux], “How Pantagruel with His Tongue Covered a Whole Army, and what the Author Saw in His Mouth”...

Adjective (2) capitalized: Cisalpine

Cisalpine (not comparable)

  1. (historical) Synonym of Gallican (“of or pertaining to Gallicanism (“the doctrine that the church of France is autonomous, especially in relation to the pope”)”).
    • They [volume XIII of the works of Henri François d'Aguesseau] shew the conflict between the cisalpine and transalpine opinions on papal power, so late as the reign of Lewis XIV, and the great difficulty, by which, even at that period, the former obtained the ascendant.1821, Charles Butler, “The English Jesuits—Father [Robert] Persons”, in Additions to the Historical Memoirs Respecting the English, Irish, and Scottish Catholics, from the Reformation to the Present...
    • [N]ot being swayed by the spirit of either the ultramontane or the cisalpine school, by impracticable philosophical Jansenism, by abominable, gross, and hypocritical Jesuitism, nor by a collection of irrelevant doctrines based on contested principles, let us fix the following ones, which are...1845 June, “Art. IV.—1. Revelations of Spain, in 1845. By an English Resident, 2 vols. 8vo. London: 1845. Colburn. […] [book reviews]”, in The Dublin Review, volume XVIII, number XXXVI, London...
    Synonyms:
    Gallican
    Antonyms:
    ultramontane
  2. (UK, historical) Of or pertaining to cisalpinism (“a movement in 18th–19th century Britain among Roman Catholics which took the view that allegiance to the Crown was compatible with allegiance to the pope, and that Roman Catholics should be emancipated from various legal restrictions”).
    • In pointing to some of these excesses on both sides, I have it not in contemplation to canvass, argue or even to refute errors either ultramontane or cisalpine, but merely to secure to myself a tenable position, […]1824, Francis Plowden, “Of Tithes and Other Church Property”, in Human Subordination: Being an Elementary Disquisition Concerning the Civil and Spiritual Power and Authority, to which the Creator...
    • Lord Stourton [i.e., Charles Stourton, 17th Baron Stourton] had declined to join the Cisalpine Club, which consisted of men opposed to what they considered the excessive claims of an ultramontane section, but he remained a supporter of the views held by the dissolved Catholic Committee; […]1936 May, Joscelyne Lechmere, “A Great Catholic Historian. John, Cardinal Lingard, 1771–1851”, in The Ecclesiastical Review: Monthly Publication for the Clergy, volume IV (10th series; volume XCIV...
    Antonyms:
    ultramontane
  3. (historical) Alternative letter-case form of cisalpine (“on this side of the Alps (chiefly the south side where Rome is located)”).
    • Cæsar had by this time nearly 30,000 men. The Cisalpine territories in mere enthusiasm had raised twenty-two cohorts for him.1879, James Anthony Froude, chapter XXI, in Cæsar: A Sketch, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., →OCLC, page 356
    • Yes, 'tis old Gallus owns the heritage / Seen on the side of yon Cisalpine slope; / The homestead with the spreading pine for cope, / The thatched roof covers but a single stage.1927, José-Maria de Heredia, “Villula”, in Merle St. Croix Wright, transl., Translations from José-Maria de Heredia, New York, N.Y.: Harold Vinal, →OCLC, page 49
    Antonyms:
    transalpine

Noun capitalized: Cisalpine

Cisalpine (plural Cisalpines)

  1. (historical) Synonym of Gallican (“an adherent to, and supporter of, Gallicanism”).
    Synonyms:
    Gallican
  2. (UK, historical) In 18th–19th century Britain, a Roman Catholic opponent of ultramontanism and advocate of Catholic emancipation through compromise and obedience to secular authorities.
    • Some of the Cisalpines carried their opposition to the monastic orders so far as to be very unfriendly to the French émigrées nuns, for whose expulsion from England Sir J. Mildmay introduced a Bill in 1800.1897, Wilfrid Ward, The Life and Times of Cardinal Wiseman, 2nd edition, volume 1, page 203, note 1
    • But the Cisalpines began to be overshadowed by the ultramontane spirit in the 1830s, and it was not until after the Second Vatican Council a hundred and thirty years later that English Roman Catholics again asked themselves whether they were primarily English or primarily Roman.1992, D[enis] G. Paz, Popular Anti-Catholicism in Mid-Victorian England, →ISBN, page 83

Also used as

cisalpine is also the alternative letter-case form of Cisalpine.

Examples of cisalpine in a sentence

  • [A]n Entrenched Camp is forming under the direction of the French, in the Cisalpine Territory towards the Frontiers of His Imperial Majesty's new acquisitions; […]1798 April 16, “Foreign Intelligence”, in The Anti-Jacobin, or, Weekly Examiner. […], 4th edition, volume II, number XXIII, London: […]...
  • Northern Italy was still excluded, being not called Italy, but Cisalpine Gaul.1879, James Anthony Froude, chapter VII, in Cæsar: A Sketch, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., →OCLC, page 67:
  • It would be best to alternate between cisalpine and transalpine candidates.1970, Karl August Fink, “The Council of Constance: Martin V”, in Hans-Georg Beck, Karl August Fink, Josef Glazik, Erwin Iserloh, Hans...
  • Most Cisalpine Celtic inscriptions are of the proprietary or funerary type.2012, Joseph Eska, “Inscriptions, Ancient”, in John T[homas] Koch, Antone Minard, editors, The Celts: History, Life, and Culture, volume 2...

Synonyms of cisalpine

Antonyms

Forms of cisalpine

Adjective
alternative formCisalpine
alternative formcisalpine
Noun
pluralCisalpines

Origin of cisalpine

PIE word *ḱís Learned borrowing from Latin cisalpīnus (“cisalpine”) + English -ine (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’). Cisalpīnus is derived from cis (“on or to this or the near side of”) + Alpīnus (“of or pertaining to the Alps, alpine”) (from Alpēs (“Alps”) (ultimate etymology uncertain, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- (“to grow; to nourish”), Celtic, or a pre-Roman Alpine substrate) + -īnus (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’)). The English word is analysable as cis- + Alpine.

The adjective is derived from cisalpine (“on this side of the Alps (chiefly the south side where Rome is located)”). Adjective sense 2 (“of or pertaining to cisalpinism”) was popularized by the Cisalpine Club which was founded in England in 1792. The noun is derived from the adjective.

Words formed from cisalpine

Questions about cisalpine

What does cisalpine mean?
Cisalpine means on this side of the Alps (chiefly the south side where Rome is located).
How do you use cisalpine in a sentence?
[A]n Entrenched Camp is forming under the direction of the French, in the Cisalpine Territory towards the Frontiers of His Imperial Majesty's new acquisitions; […]
What part of speech is cisalpine?
Cisalpine can be an adjective or a noun.
How do you pronounce cisalpine?
Cisalpine is pronounced /sɪsˈælpaɪn/ (UK).

Words near cisalpine in the dictionary

  1. cis-trans isomers
  2. cis-woman
  3. cis-women
  4. CISA
  5. cisacting
  6. cisalpine
  7. Cisalpine Gaul
  8. Cisalpine Gaulish
  9. Cisalpines
  10. cisalpinism
  11. cisandine

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: cisalpine (page history and authors); Cisalpine (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-cisalpine.wav.

Cite this entry: “cisalpine.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/cisalpine. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.