chancel

[chan-suh l, chahn-]

See more synonyms for chancel on Thesaurus.com

noun

the space about the altar of a church, usually enclosed, for the clergy and other officials.

Origin of chancel

1275–1325; Middle English < Middle French < Late Latin cancellus lattice, railing or screen before the altar of a church, Latin cancell(ī) (plural) lattice, railing, grating; see cancel

Related formschan·celed, chan·celled, adjectivesub·chan·cel, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for chancel

altar, shrine, temple, sanctuary, synagogue, parish, mosque, chapel, sanctum, chancel, basilica, minster, oratory, mission, abbey, fold, cathedral, tabernacle, bethel, chantry

Examples from the Web for chancel

Contemporary Examples of chancel

My chair was near the chancel rail, I now turned toward the west end of the church.
Read ‘The King in Yellow,’ the ‘True Detective’ Reference That’s the Key to the Show
Robert W. Chambers
February 20, 2014
Since 1996, Bolding has been director of the Chancel Choir (renamed The Inspirational Voices of Abyssinian in 2008).
Women in the World Speakers
The Daily Beast
March 8, 2010

Historical Examples of chancel

The nave, then as now, was the charge of the parish; the chancel, of the rector.
Cameos from English History, from Rollo to Edward II
Charlotte Mary Yonge
Saxon arches separating the nave from the aisles and chancel are plain.
English Villages
P. H. Ditchfield
Many were cruciform, and consisted of nave, transepts, and chancel.
English Villages
P. H. Ditchfield
She saw them sitting in their pew far down toward the chancel.
Bride of the Mistletoe
James Lane Allen
Brother Paul was sitting in the chancel with a lamp on the stall by his side.
The Christian
Hall Caine

British Dictionary definitions for chancel

chancel

noun

the part of a church containing the altar, sanctuary, and choir, usually separated from the nave and transepts by a screen

Word Origin for chancel

C14: from Old French, from Latin cancellī (plural) lattice

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

Word Origin and History for chancel

c.1300, "part of the church around the altar," from Old French chancel, from Late Latin cancellus "lattice," from Latin cancelli (plural) "grating, bars" (see cancel); sense extended in Late Latin from the lattice-work that separated the choir from the nave in a church to the space itself.