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archpriest

[ahrch-preest]
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noun
  1. a priest holding first rank, as among the members of a cathedral chapter or among the clergy of a district outside the episcopal city.
  2. Roman Catholic Church. a priest acting as superior of the Roman Catholic secular clergy in England, first appointed in 1598 and superseded by a vicar apostolic in 1623.
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Origin of archpriest

1350–1400; Middle English archeprest (modeled on Late Latin archipresbyter < Greek archipresbýteros). See arch-1, priest
Related formsarch·priest·hood, nounarch·priest·ship, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

metropolitanpatriarchpriestcardinalbishopsuffraganarchpriestclergyperson

Examples from the Web for archpriest

Historical Examples

  • Here the Archpriest halted, and with the staff stirred the water.

    Pabo, The Priest

    Sabine Baring-Gould

  • But his fatherliness holds that Pabo the Archpriest was burnt.

    Pabo, The Priest

    Sabine Baring-Gould

  • He was finally deposed from office, and Birkhead took his place as archpriest.

    The Jesuits, 1534-1921

    Thomas J. Campbell

  • The son of our archpriest, Father Cyril, himself is a lawyer.

    Dead Souls

    Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol

  • Then began a bitter war of pamphlets between the adherents and the adversaries of the archpriest.

    The Jesuits, 1534-1921

    Thomas J. Campbell

British Dictionary definitions for archpriest

archpriest

noun Christianity
  1. (formerly) a chief assistant to a bishop, performing many of his sacerdotal functions during his absence
  2. a senior priest
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Derived Formsarchpriesthood or archpriestship, noun
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