Word.ws English Dictionary

nolo episcopari

nolo episcopari interjection: expressing a facetiously modest refusal of something which is actually desired.

Interjection

  1. Expressing a facetiously modest refusal of something which is actually desired.
    • He soon found means to make his addresses, in express terms, to his mistress, from whom he received an answer in the proper form, viz.: the answer which was first made some thousands of years ago, and which hath been handed down by tradition from mother to daughter ever since. If I were to...1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC
    • their Leader – for so, in spite of his Nolo episcopari, we must presume to call him — has given in his Elbing Letter so distinct a pledge – not merely of opinions, but of actual designs if his ministerial career had not been arrested – that we have little doubt that [...] Sir Robert Peel will...1847, ‘Parliamentary Prospects’, The Quarterly Review, volume LXXXI

Examples of nolo episcopari in a sentence

  • If I were to translate this into Latin, I should render it by these two words, Nolo Episcopari: a phrase likewise of immemorial use on another occasion.1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC:
  • ‘Nolo episcopari,’ he urges in grateful deprecation.1869, Pele-Mele, ‘Nolens (Volens) Episcopari’, New Monthly Magazine, vol. 145

Origin of nolo episcopari

From Latin nolo episcōpārī (“I do not want to be bishop”). It was formerly maintained that those nominated for the post of bishop politely declined the offer twice with these words.

Questions about nolo episcopari

What does nolo episcopari mean?
Nolo episcopari means expressing a facetiously modest refusal of something which is actually desired.
How do you use nolo episcopari in a sentence?
If I were to translate this into Latin, I should render it by these two words, Nolo Episcopari: a phrase likewise of immemorial use on another occasion.
What part of speech is nolo episcopari?
Nolo episcopari is an interjection.

Words near nolo episcopari in the dictionary

  1. Nolly
  2. Nollywood
  3. nolo
  4. nolo contendere
  5. nolo contenderes
  6. nolo episcopari
  7. nolomirole
  8. nolt
  9. Nolte
  10. Noltes
  11. Nolting

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: nolo episcopari (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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