beadledom
a stupid or officious display or exercise of authority associated with petty officials, and historically epitomized in England’s parish beadles, who kept order in the church and the poorhouse.
Origin of beadledom
1Words Nearby beadledom
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use beadledom in a sentence
And then beadledom seemed crazed, and, joined with the many ale-bibbers, were turned out to do good service in the show.
The Adventures of My Cousin Smooth | Timothy TempletonPossibly it was the familiarity with divine things which synagogue beadledom involves that had bred his contempt for them.
Dreamers of the Ghetto | I. Zangwill
British Dictionary definitions for beadledom
/ (ˈbiːdəldəm) /
petty officialdom
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
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