choir

American  

[kwahy^uhr] / kwaɪər /

Archaic, quire

noun

• choirs
  plural

1. a company of singers, especially an organized group employed in church service.

2. any group of musicians or musical instruments; a musical company, or band, or a division of one.

   string choir.

3. Architecture.

   1. the part of a church occupied by the singers of the choir.

   2. the part of a cruciform church east of the crossing.

4. (in medieval angelology) one of the orders of angels.

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adjective

1. professed to recite or chant the divine office.

   a choir monk.

verb (used with or without object)

1. to sing or sound in chorus.

idioms

1. preach to the choir. see preach to the choir.

choir British  

/ kwaɪə /

noun

1. an organized group of singers, esp for singing in church services

2. 1. the part of a cathedral, abbey, or church in front of the altar, lined on both sides with benches, and used by the choir and clergy Compare chancel

   2. ( as modifier )

      choir stalls

3. a number of instruments of the same family playing together

   a brass choir

4. Also called: choir organ.  one of the manuals on an organ controlling a set of soft sweet-toned pipes Compare great swell

5. any of the nine orders of angels in medieval angelology

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• choirlike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• choirs
  plural

Etymology

Origin of choir

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English quer, from Old French cuer, from Latin chorus “choir,” replacing Old English chor, from Latin; see chorus

Explanation

A choir is group of singers, often gathered for church ceremonies. If you love to sing but don't fancy a solo turn on a TV talent show, perhaps joining a choir would satisfy you. Choir, pronounced QUIRE, comes from the Latin word chorus, which itself comes from the Greek name for a group of singers and dancers. We still use chorus for singing or dancing, but choir is exclusively for singing groups. Although choirs are traditionally associated with church services, they don't have to be. If you love singing but aren't religious, you could start a choir that sings about the glory of donuts. It's also a verb, as in, "I love to choir."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

choir choirs

In high school, he was a choir kid, and though he can “listen to just about anything,” he prefers “west coast rap.”

From Slate ● Aug. 20, 2026

Mandel leads the Pacoima Singers, a choir program for which Pacoima Middle School has long been renowned.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

Coldplay will feature in a collaboration with PS22 Chorus, an acclaimed choir of students from a New York public elementary school.

From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026

Davis first heard 19-year-old Whitney Houston, who had grown up singing in a gospel choir, at a New York City nightclub in 1983.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026

The band begins an upbeat song, and the choir marches down the aisles, swaying their arms and clapping to the beat.

From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas

Two large choirs also joined the orchestra at the sessions in April, which took place at Alexandra Palace in north London.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

Gospel choirs, country musicians, jazz ensembles, mariachi groups, Indigenous performers, military bands and local community orchestras share stages throughout the city.

From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2026

Una McCann is the director of one of the choirs involved, and wrote a song called 'Water is Life', that all the choirs sang simultaneously.

From BBC ● Apr. 19, 2026

This year’s special America 250 fete brings together more than 1,000 global performers who will treat audiences to pipe-and-drum acts, drill teams, military bands, choirs, motorcycle stunt shows and more.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026

The Gabrielis also experimented with placing clusters of singers and instrumentalists in different pockets of the building, a technique known as antiphony, meaning ‘voices against each other’, or poly choral, ‘many choirs’.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

Related Words

• assemblage
• band
• cast
• chorus
• orchestra
• quartet
• quintet
• sextet
• trio
• troupe