DEAN

n. 1 a the head of the chapter of a cathedral or collegiate church. b (usu. rural dean) Brit. a member of the clergy exercising supervision over a group of parochial clergy within a division of an archdeaconry. 2 a a college or university official, esp. one of several fellows of a college, with disciplinary and advisory functions. b the head of a university faculty or department or of a medical school. 3 = DOYEN. øDean of Faculty the president of the Faculty of Advocates in Scotland. [ME f. AF deen, OF deien, f. LL decanus f. decem ten; orig. = chief of a group of ten]