clergyman
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of clergyman
Explanation
A clergyman is a male religious leader. Priests, rabbis, ministers, or imams are all considered clergymen if they're male. While you can use the terms clergyman and clergywoman to specify male and female religious leaders, both clergyperson and simply clergy are fine too. Any term including clergy is most common in Christianity — Catholic clergymen, for example, include priests, deacons, and bishops. The word comes from the Latin clericus, "learned man or priest."
Vocabulary lists containing clergyman
"The Red Shoes" by Hans Christian Andersen
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Adventures of Don Quixote
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Vocabulary from Readings 5, Unit 4
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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.
The parsonage between the village and the moors where the Brontes lived with their clergyman father and brother, Branwell, is now a museum dedicated to their memory.
From Barron's • Feb. 28, 2026
It turns out that each of them has some tangled history with the deceased clergyman.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 27, 2025
In the early 20th century, a clergyman named Montague Summers wrote histories of European vampires that displayed his erudition and eccentricity—not least because he was sure that vampires really did exist.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 21, 2025
Matthew Mullineux, a London clergyman, was also a Lion in 1896.
From BBC • May 7, 2025
Upon which, the clergyman said again, “WHO giveth this woman to be married to this man?”
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
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.
