- the reform movement of the Roman Catholic Church in the 16th and early 17th centuries considered as a reaction to the Protestant Reformation
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
Coun′ter Reforma′tion,
coun•ter•ref•or•ma•tion (koun′tər ref′ər mā′shən),USA pronunciation n.
- Religionthe movement within the Roman Catholic Church that followed the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century.
coun•ter•ref•or•ma•tion (koun′tər ref′ər mā′shən),USA pronunciation n.
- a reformation opposed to or counteracting a previous reformation.
- counter- + reformation, as translation of German Gegenreformation 1830–40
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
Counter-Reformation /ˌkaʊntəˌrɛfəˈmeɪʃən/ n
'Counter Reformation' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):