also: きょうおう
noun
Refers specifically to the head of the Roman Catholic Church.
ローマ教皇はバチカンに住んでいる。
The Pope lives in the Vatican.
新しい教皇が選ばれた。
A new Pope has been elected.
法王 is sometimes used interchangeably with 教皇, but 教皇 is the more precise term for the Pope in Catholic contexts. 法王 can also refer to high-ranking Buddhist priests.
From Chinese 教皇 (jiàohuáng), meaning 'religious emperor' or 'teaching sovereign'. The term was adopted into Japanese to refer to the Pope.