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.
It turns out that each of them has some tangled history with the deceased clergyman.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 27, 2025
The Chicago-born clergyman, who spent nearly 20 years as a missionary in Peru and eventually obtained citizenship, took the name Leo XIV.
From Barron's • Nov. 25, 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
Itoje quoted bible scripture, Farrell quoted, kind of, the American clergyman and psychologist, Norman Vincent Peale when talking about shooting for the moon and, even if you miss, landing among the stars.
From BBC • Aug. 2, 2025
But every geek has had a brush with a parent, a teacher, a clergyman, someone who’s branded his or her Net passion dangerous, unhealthy, addictive, or bizarre.
From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz
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.
