churchwarden

[ church-wawr-dn ]

/ ˈtʃɜrtʃˌwɔr dn /

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noun

Anglican Church. a lay officer who looks after the secular affairs of the church, and who, in England, is the legal representative of the parish.

Episcopal Church. a lay church officer who, with other members of the vestry, is in charge of the temporal management of the parish.

a long-stemmed clay pipe for smoking.

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Origin of churchwarden

1400–50; late Middle English chirche wardeyn

Words nearby churchwarden

church suffering, church text, church triumphant, church visible, churchward, churchwarden, churchwoman, churchy, churchyard, churchyard beetle, churidars

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use churchwarden in a sentence

He subsequently served as Churchwarden and was active in many other Church offices.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building|George Laing Miller
Field's name is found in the St Botolph's parish books from 1657 to 1668, and in 1660 he was churchwarden.
A History of the Cambridge University Press|S. C. Roberts
I think a good likely girl, and a parish child of St. Bride's, of honest parentage, and recommended by the churchwarden.
Diary of Samuel Pepys, Complete|Samuel Pepys
And feeding high, and living soft,Grew plump and able-bodied; Until the grave churchwarden doff'd,The parson smirk'd and nodded.
The Book of Humorous Verse|Various

I am sure that Mr. ——, the churchwarden, will be glad to accommodate you with a seat in his gig.
Yorkshire Oddities, Incidents and Strange Events|S. Baring-Gould

British Dictionary definitions for churchwarden

churchwarden

/ (ˌtʃɜːtʃˈwɔːdən) /

noun

Church of England Episcopal Church one of two assistants of a parish priest who administer the secular affairs of the church

a long-stemmed tobacco pipe made of clay

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