ecclesiastic

[ ih-klee-zee-as-tik ]

/ ɪˌkli ziˈæs tɪk /

noun

a member of the clergy or other person in religious orders.

a member of the ecclesia in ancient Athens.

adjective

Nearby words

eccles., ecclesia, ecclesial, ecclesiarch, ecclesiastes, ecclesiastic, ecclesiastical, ecclesiastical calendar, ecclesiastical commissioners, ecclesiastical court, ecclesiastical society

Origin of ecclesiastic

1475–85; < Late Latin ecclēsiasticus < Greek ekklēsiastikós. See Ecclesiastes, -ic

Related formsan·ti·ec·cle·si·as·tic, noun, adjectivenon·ec·cle·si·as·tic, adjective, nounun·ec·cle·si·as·tic, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for ecclesiastics

Harps of this description are figured on the knees of ecclesiastics on several of our ancient stone crosses.
An Illustrated History of Ireland from AD 400 to 1800|Mary Frances Cusack
That ecclesiastics, like other persons, are entirely subject to the king.
A Philosophical Dictionary, Volume 3 (of 10)|Franois-Marie Arouet (AKA Voltaire)
For Franks it is ordinarily fourteen dollars per head, unless they are ecclesiastics, for in that case it is but half so much.
Early Travels in Palestine|Arculf et al.
The troops, accompanied by ecclesiastics who bore the banners of the cross, passed out at the gate of the Kremlin.
The Empire of Russia|John S. C. Abbott

In 1414 a mixed tribunal of ecclesiastics and laymen was established to search out heretics and punish them.
Folkways|William Graham Sumner

British Dictionary definitions for ecclesiastics

ecclesiastic

/ (ɪˌkliːzɪˈæstɪk) /

noun

a clergyman or other person in holy orders

adjective

of or associated with the Christian Church or clergy

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

ecclesiastic

noun

adjective

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of ecclesiastic

Examples from the Web for ecclesiastics

British Dictionary definitions for ecclesiastics

ecclesiastic

noun

adjective