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priest

American  
[preest] / prist /

noun

  1. a person whose office it is to perform religious rites, and especially to make sacrificial offerings.

  2. (in Christian use)

    1. a person ordained to the sacerdotal or pastoral office; a member of the clergy; minister.

    2. (in hierarchical churches) a member of the clergy of the order next below that of bishop, authorized to carry out the Christian ministry.

  3. a minister of any religion.

verb (used with object)

  1. to ordain as a priest.

priest British  
/ priːst /

noun

  1. Christianity a person ordained to act as a mediator between God and man in administering the sacraments, preaching, blessing, guiding, etc

  2. (in episcopal Churches) a minister in the second grade of the hierarchy of holy orders, ranking below a bishop but above a deacon

  3. a minister of any religion

  4. Judaism a descendant of the family of Aaron who has certain privileges in the synagogue service

  5. (in some non-Christian religions) an official who offers sacrifice on behalf of the people and performs other religious ceremonies

  6. (sometimes capital) a variety of fancy pigeon having a bald pate with a crest or peak at the back of the head

  7. angling a small club used to kill fish caught

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to make a priest; ordain

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
priest Cultural  

  1. One who is designated an authority on religious matters. In some churches, especially the Anglican Communion, Eastern Orthodox Church, and Roman Catholic Church, the ordained church leader who serves a congregation of believers is called a priest. The priests in these churches administer the sacraments, preach, and care for the needs of their congregations. (See also minister and pastor.)

Other Word Forms

  • antipriest adjective
  • priestless adjective
  • priestlike adjective
  • underpriest noun
  • unpriestlike adjective

Etymology

Origin of priest

before 900; Middle English prest ( e ), priest, Old English prēost, ultimately < Late Latin presbyter presbyter

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Racked with torment over her proximity to evil, Hilda makes a desperate confession to a Catholic priest, who happens to be a New Englander.

From The Wall Street Journal

For more than 30 years, I have loved being a priest.

From The Wall Street Journal

Maggie’s Catholic priest described her as a “humble, modest, and excellent soul.”

From Literature

In the last year Pierce has been deposed from holy orders and he is no longer a priest.

From BBC

Charlie suggested to the local priest the idea of using the parish church's juvenile sodality - a religious group for young parishioners - as the basis for a football league.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.