pastor

American  

[pas-ter, pah-ster] / ˈpæs tər, ˈpɑ stər /

noun

pastors plural

1. a minister or priest in charge of a church.

2. a person having spiritual care of a number of persons.

3. Ornithology. any of various starlings, especially Sturnus roseus rosy pastor of Europe and Asia.

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verb (used with object)

1. to serve as the pastor of.

   He pastored the church here for many years.

pastor British  

/ ˈpɑːstə /

noun

1. a clergyman or priest in charge of a congregation

2. a person who exercises spiritual guidance over a number of people

3. an archaic word for shepherd

4. Also called: rosy pastor.  a S Asian starling, Sturnus roseus, having glossy black head and wings and a pale pink body

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pastor Cultural  

1. In some groups of Christians (see also Christian), the clergyman in charge of an individual congregation. The term is used this way in the Lutheran Church and Roman Catholic Church and, to a lesser extent, by Baptists and in the Protestant Episcopal Church.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• pastorship
  noun
• subpastor
  noun
• pastorless
  adjective
• pastorlike
  adjective
• pastorly
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• pastors
  plural

Etymology

Origin of pastor

1325–75; < Latin pāstor shepherd, literally, feeder, equivalent to pās-, base of pāscere to put to pasture, feed + -tor -tor; replacing Middle English pastour < Anglo-French

Explanation

A pastor is someone with the authority to lead religious services. Pastors lead church services and help others worship. Pastor is a religious title used mostly in Christian churches. The pastor is a leader within a church who has been ordained and therefore given the authority to conduct religious services. The pastor leads Sunday mass and other types of rituals, such as funerals. Members of the congregation may seek a pastor for advice. Within a religious community, a pastor is someone respected very much.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pastor pastors

A lawsuit filed by Scott Winters, a 55-year-old pastor from Florida, claimed ChatGPT told him not to seek medical help after repeatedly asking about symptoms in the build-up to a near-fatal pulmonary embolism.

From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026

But her husband uses the tools constantly, and between him and the pastor, she said, “they’ve won me over.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

Every American pastor has the same First Amendment rights as any other citizen.

From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026

But the last white, Democratic pastor in Congress was Bob Edgar, a Methodist minister representing Pennsylvania from 1975 to 1987.

From Barron's ● Jul. 12, 2026

He’s only been the pastor for about a year.

From "Betty Before X" by Ilyasah Shabazz and Renée Watson

Half of all pastors say they use AI for brainstorming or idea generation, according to the Barna Group, a firm that studies U.S. faith trends.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

Lynas said he believes the bill risks criminalising "teachers, parents, therapists, pastors and many others".

From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026

Executive coaching firm Novus Global, which several former pastors started more than a decade ago, has expanded into next-gen coaching in response to inquiries from clients including Fortune 500 CEOs and professional athletes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 1, 2026

Since then, parodies have become a social-media staple for real-estate teams, healthcare clinicians, church pastors and even the cast of 2025’s “Superman” reboot.

From Salon ● Apr. 25, 2026

She would ask them a question, just as she had asked questions of her pastors, and the imams would try to answer, but often they wouldn’t know.

From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers

Related Words

• cleric
• minister
• preacher
• priest
• rector
• vicar