'pontiff' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'pontifex', where 'pons, pont-' meant 'bridge' and 'facere' meant 'to make'.

'pontiff' changed from the Latin word 'pontifex' (used in ancient Rome), passed into ecclesiastical/Medieval Latin and Old French forms such as 'pontif'/'pontifice', and eventually became the modern English word 'pontiff' via Middle English.

Initially it meant 'bridge-builder' (a literal maker of bridges in Latin usage), then came to denote a high priest in Roman religion and later a senior Christian bishop; in modern usage it primarily denotes 'the Pope'.