clergyman

[klur-jee-muhn]

noun

plural

clergymen 

1. a member of the clergy.

2. an ordained Christian minister.

clergyman

/ ˈklɜːdʒɪmən /

noun

1. Gender-neutral form: vicar.  priest. a member of the clergy

Word History and Origins

Origin of clergyman¹

First recorded in 1570–80; clergy + -man

Example Sentences

He was joined by clergymen including Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, the most senior bishop in Eastern Orthodoxy.

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It turns out that each of them has some tangled history with the deceased clergyman.

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The Chicago-born clergyman, who spent nearly 20 years as a missionary in Peru and eventually obtained citizenship, took the name Leo XIV.

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In Putin's Russia, where criticism of the war is a criminal offence, such a stance from a top clergyman was enough to lose Hilarion his job.

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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.

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Related Words

• bishop 
• chaplain 
• cleric 
• evangelist 
• missionary 
• pastor 
• pontiff 
• preacher 
• priest 
• rabbi