1. (noun) a Roman Catholic order founded by Saint Ignatius of Loyola in 1534 to defend Catholicism against the Reformation and to do missionary work among the heathen; it is strongly committed to education and scholarship

• society of jesus

1. (noun) a Roman Catholic order founded by Saint Ignatius of Loyola in 1534 to defend Catholicism against the Reformation and to do missionary work among the heathen; it is strongly committed to education and scholarship

• jesuit

1. (noun) a Roman Catholic order founded by Saint Ignatius of Loyola in 1534 to defend Catholicism against the Reformation and to do missionary work among the heathen; it is strongly committed to education and scholarship

• monastic order
• order