rural dean

American  

noun

1. a cleric ranking just below an archdeacon, in charge of an archdeaconry.

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rural dean British  

noun

1. a clergyman having authority over a group of parishes

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Etymology

Origin of rural dean

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50

Example Sentences

A rural dean and rector has been suspended from his duties after he was arrested on suspicion of voyeurism.

From BBC • Aug. 30, 2016

Dean Thrower, who is also rural dean of Hadleigh, was released on police bail until 10 October.

From BBC • Aug. 30, 2016

Herts, seat of the Cecils, he became rural dean of Hertford in 1904, honorary chaplain to King Edward VII in 1909.

From Time Magazine Archive

He even listened gently to his wife, the angular daughter of a rural dean, who loved to give the little doctor a piece of her mind.

From Time Magazine Archive

Mr. Edwards, who was the oldest clergyman in the Church of England, was a rural dean, a justice of the peace, and a Deputy Lieutenant for Norfolk. 

From Norfolk Annals A Chronological Record of Remarkable Events in the Nineteeth Century, Vol. 2 by Mackie, Charles