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high priest

noun
  1. a chief priest.
  2. Judaism. (from Aaronic times to about the 1st century a.d.) the priest ranking above all other priests and the only one permitted to enter the holy of holies.
  3. Informal. a person in a high position of power or influence, especially one who is revered as a preeminent authority or interpreter: the high priest of the young painters.
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Origin of high priest

1350–1400; Middle English heiye prest
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for high priest

Historical Examples of high priest

  • He continues His office of High-priest, and intercedes for us with the Father.

    An Explanation of Luther's Small Catechism

    Joseph Stump

  • The high-priest is called Dustoor, the others are called Mobed.

  • The High-Priest yonder should know this mark, for he saw it at my birth.

    Morning Star

    H. Rider Haggard

  • While Krates was at his work not a word passed between him and the high-priest.

  • "We use no deception," interrupted the high-priest, sternly rebuking his colleague.

British Dictionary definitions for high priest

high priest

noun
  1. Judaism the priest of highest rank who alone was permitted to enter the holy of holies of the tabernacle and Temple
  2. Mormon Church a priest of the order of Melchizedek priesthood
  3. the head of a group or cultAlso (feminine): high priestess
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Derived Formshigh priesthood, noun
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