minster

[min-ster]

See more synonyms for minster on Thesaurus.com

noun

a church actually or originally connected with a monastic establishment.
any large or important church, as a cathedral.

Origin of minster

before 900; Middle English, Old English mynster (cognate with German Münster) < Vulgar Latin *monisterium, for Late Latin monastērium monastery

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for minster

sanctuary, synagogue, parish, mosque, shrine, temple, chapel, basilica, chancel, minster, oratory, mission, abbey, fold, cathedral, tabernacle, bethel, chantry, sacellum

Examples from the Web for minster

Historical Examples of minster

It may be that he can prefer thee to some post about the minster.
The Armourer's Prentices
Charlotte M. Yonge
We missed our morning mass, it will do us no harm to hear Nones in the Minster.
The Armourer's Prentices
Charlotte M. Yonge
The Holy Well, which was inside the minster, is now covered up.
England, Picturesque and Descriptive
Joel Cook
Its minster was founded in the days of Æthelstan, but the remains are Norman work.
England, Picturesque and Descriptive
Joel Cook
I have just come from the minster, but could see nothing of him there.
The Nebuly Coat
John Meade Falkner

British Dictionary definitions for minster

minster

noun

British any of certain cathedrals and large churches, usually originally connected to a monastery

Word Origin for minster

Old English mynster, probably from Vulgar Latin monisterium (unattested), variant of Church Latin monastērium monastery

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

Word Origin and History for minster

Old English mynster "the church of a monastery" (8c.), from Late Latin monasterium (see monastery). Cf. Old French moustier, French moûtier, Old Irish manister.