circuit rider
Americannoun
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(formerly) a minister who rode horseback from place to place to preach and perform religious ceremonies.
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someone, as a public official or a nurse, who travels throughout a given territory to provide services.
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, 2012Etymology
Origin of circuit rider
An Americanism dating back to 1830–40
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Tucker was known as a “circuit rider,” hopping between several clinics across Mississippi and Alabama.
From Seattle Times
Ann Tapscott, the great-great-great granddaughter of the Rev. Peter Cartwright, the evangelist and Methodist circuit rider, lamented the loss of small congregations, like New Salem.
From Washington Times
“The circuit rider in a lot of ways was lost,” Jason Felici said.
From Washington Post
Circuit rider ministers, who arrived by horseback, led the outdoor services.
From Washington Times
She is a chief circuit rider for liberty, spending more than 260 days a year preaching against federal government overreach.
From Washington Post
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
