exorcist
[ek-sawr-sist, -ser-]
- a person who practices exorcism.
- Roman Catholic Church.
- a member of the second-ranking of the four minor orders.
- the order itself.Compare acolyte(def 2), lector(def 2), ostiary(def 1).
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Origin of exorcist
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for exorcist
Contemporary Examples
Father Vicenzo Taraborelli in Rome is an exorcist with set office hours and dedicated phone lines to take exorcism appointments.
William Friedkin (The Exorcist) and Justin Lin (Fast Five) have been a couple of the names floating about.
Colin Farrell Officially Confirmed For ‘True Detective’ Season 2: ‘I’m So Excited’Marlow Stern
September 21, 2014
His apparently sincere desire to help me deal with my problems made his transition to Exorcist Bob all the more jarring.
When I commented that he was surprisingly ecumenical for an exorcist, he smiled.
“You often see the exorcist portrayed looking as evil as the possessed,” he says.
Historical Examples
I have passed by a house in which an exorcist has been exercising his powers.
Castes and Tribes of Southern IndiaEdgar Thurston
Then the exorcist said to the people round, "Take her away to bed, the Bouda has left her."
Human AnimalsFrank Hamel
For she loved her exorcist; like a sick woman full of confidence, she loved her doctor.
A Virgin HeartRemy de Gourmont
The exorcist became a mesmerizer, possibly a deceived deceiver.
Superstition in MedicineHugo Magnus
He whispered these words so low, that the exorcist could hardly hear them.
Word Origin and History for exorcist
n.
"one who drives out evil spirits," late 14c., from Late Latin exorcista, from Ecclesiastical Greek exorkistes "an exorcist," from exorkizein (see exorcism).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper