minister

American  

[min-uh-ster] / ˈmɪn ə stər /

noun

• ministers
  plural

1. a person authorized to conduct religious worship; member of the clergy; pastor.

2. a person authorized to administer sacraments, as at Mass.

3. a person appointed by or under the authority of a sovereign or head of a government to some high office of state, especially to that of head of an administrative department.

   the minister of finance.

4. a diplomatic representative accredited by one government to another and ranking next below an ambassador.

5. a person acting as the agent or instrument of another.

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verb (used with object)

• ministers,
  present (3rd person singular)
• ministered,
  past participle,  past
• ministering
  present participle

1. to administer or apply.

   to minister the last rites.

2. Archaic. to furnish; supply.

verb (used without object)

• ministers,
  present (3rd person singular)
• ministered,
  past participle,  past
• ministering
  present participle

1. to perform the functions of a religious minister.

2. to give service, care, or aid; attend, as to wants or necessities..

   to minister to the needs of the hungry.

   Synonyms:

   oblige, tend, answer

3. to contribute, as to comfort or happiness.

minister British  

/ ˈmɪnɪstə /

noun

1. (esp in Presbyterian and some Nonconformist Churches) a member of the clergy

2. a person appointed to head a government department

3. any diplomatic agent accredited to a foreign government or head of state

4. short for minister plenipotentiary or envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary See envoy 1

5. Also called (in full): minister resident.  a diplomat ranking after an envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary

6. a person who attends to the needs of others, esp in religious matters

7. a person who acts as the agent or servant of a person or thing

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verb

1. to attend to the needs (of); take care (of)

2. archaic (tr) to provide; supply

minister ¹ Cultural  

1. In many Protestant churches, the presiding clergyman. Ministers preach sermons; conduct services; officiate at baptisms, weddings, and funerals; and generally look after the needs of their congregation. Some Protestant churches refer to their clergy as pastors or preachers rather than ministers.

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minister ² Cultural  

1. A title used in many countries for members of cabinets and similar public officials, who are roughly equivalent to the officials in the United States cabinet. For example, a minister of foreign affairs will have duties similar to those of the secretary of state of the United States.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• ministership
  noun
• subminister
  noun
• underminister
  noun
• preminister
  verb (used without object)
• unministered
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• ministers
  plural

Participles

• ministering
  present
• ministered
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• minister
  simple
• ministers
  simple
• have ministered
  perfect
• has ministered
  perfect
• am ministering
  progressive
• are ministering
  progressive
• is ministering
  progressive
• have been ministering
  perfect progressive
• has been ministering
  perfect progressive

Past

• ministered
  simple
• had ministered
  perfect
• was ministering
  progressive
• were ministering
  progressive
• had been ministering
  perfect progressive

Future

• will minister
  simple
• will have ministered
  perfect
• will be ministering
  progressive
• will have been ministering
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of minister

First recorded in 1250–1300; (for the noun) Middle English minister, ministre, from Old French ministre, from Latin minister “servant,” from minus “less” (adverb form of minor minor ) + -ter, noun suffix; (for the verb) Middle English ministren, from Old French ministrer, from Latin ministrāre “to act as a servant, attend,” derivative of minister; cf. master ( def. )

Explanation

You might meet a minister of the religious kind — a pastor or a rector. Or, you may meet a minister of the government kind — a prime minister or a minister of finance, for example. You don't have to be religious to minister. When you minister to someone, you take care of them. All of these meanings of minister — both as a noun and as a verb — contain a grain of the original Latin meaning, "servant." A minister in a church serves his or her flock, and a prime minister serves his or her country.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

minister ministers ministered ministering

A young Michel Rocard, later the prime minister of France, was among those who went to help.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

"These days, one of the roles of a prime minister is to act as a content creator," Buckley told AFP.

From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026

Whether he is pulling a pint, tossing a builder's helmet in the air or running with Olympic medallist Mo Farah, the UK's new prime minister Andy Burnham has embraced social media with a deft touch.

From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026

More than 200 people gathered at Coleraine Town Hall to call on the health minister to stop EGS being moved to Antrim Area Hospital.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

Instead, he was born in Braintree, twelve miles south of Boston, in 1735, the son of a farmer and shoemaker, who sent Adams to Harvard in the hope he might become a minister.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

She called for ministers to consult organisations supporting the most vulnerable before future alerts.

From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026

Japanese defence ministers have attended Yasukuni before, the last one being Minoru Kihara in 2024.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

"We've had so many prime ministers - it's funny now."

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

"We must make our waterways more efficient while simultaneously making ships suitable for times of low water," Bilger said Wednesday after talks with state transport ministers.

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

“Fred Shuttlesworth,” one of the ministers said, “you’re going to get all of us killed!”

From "While the World Watched: A Birmingham Bombing Survivor Comes of Age during the Civil Rights Movement" by Carolyn Maull McKinstry

Before his career took off, Reilly volunteered for the United Farm Workers and lived an ascetic life, sheltering in church halls, as he ministered to the poor.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026

During his retirement, he ministered at St Mary the Virgin in Eastbourne until he was barred in 2022.

From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2025

I was sick all day Sunday, ministered to by my girlfriend, who fed me chicken soup and bathed my head with wet washcloths.

From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2023

Among them are nuns in the U.S. who have ministered empathetically to LGBTQ+ Catholics, and took note when the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence made news last month.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 16, 2023

I ministered to their needs, making sure that there was enough sea water inside each and that the cones and chambers were inflated to just the right pressure.

From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel

Describing her experience ministering as a person of colour, Rev Eileen Cremin said it was "overall positive".

From BBC ● Feb. 8, 2026

Bedraggled and bleeding, he opens his eyes to find Anna ministering to him and is rhapsodically smitten.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 14, 2025

They both earned plaudits for doing the hard work of ministering from blue-collar cities — Buenos Aires for Francis, San Antonio for Gomez.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 2025

My recent employment has been as a hospice chaplain, ministering to dying people and their families.

From Salon ● Nov. 3, 2024

“It’s in Hebrews. It says, ‘Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?”

From "Where Things Come Back" by John Corey Whaley

Related Words

• administrator
• aide
• delegate
• diplomat
• envoy
• executive
• official
• secretary