church S1 W1 /tʃɜːtʃ $ tʃɜːrtʃ/ BrE AmE noun
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: cirice , from Late Greek kyriakon , from Greek kyriakos 'of the lord' , from kyrios 'lord, master' ]
1 . [countable] a building where Christians go to worship ⇨ cathedral :
a short church service
church bells
2 . [uncountable] the religious ceremonies in a church:
Mrs Dobson invited us to dinner after church.
My parents go to church every Sunday.
at church
We didn’t see you at church this morning.
3 . [countable] ( also Church ) one of the separate groups within the Christian religion:
the Catholic Church
4 . [singular, uncountable] the institution of the Christian religion, and all the priests and other ministers who are part of it:
the church’s attitude towards marriage
separation of church and state
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + church
▪ the local church (=the one in a particular area, or near where you live)
The local church dates from the 12th century.
▪ a parish church British English (=the main Christian church in a particular area)
This is the parish church for three villages near here.
▪ a country/town church
an attractive country church surrounded by trees
▪ a (Roman) Catholic church
I followed the crowds to the Roman Catholic church for Mass.
■ verbs
▪ go to church ( also attend church formal ) (=go to a regular religious ceremony in a church)
Do you go to church?
▪ marry/get married in a church
I’d like to get married in a church.
■ church + NOUN
▪ a church service (=a religious ceremony in a church)
There’s a church service at 10:30 every Sunday morning.
▪ a church hall (=a large room in a church)
The dance was held in the church hall.
▪ church music
church music for small choirs
▪ church bells
I could hear the church bells ringing.
▪ a church tower
I looked at the clock on the church tower.
▪ a church spire/steeple (=a church tower with a pointed top)
The tall church spires could be seen from far away.
▪ the church choir (=a group of people who lead the singing in a church)
Steve’s a member of the local church choir.
▪ a church wedding (=in a church)
She wants to have a church wedding.
• • •
THESAURUS (for Meaning 3)
■ religious group
▪ church one of the different groups within the Christian religion – used especially in names:
The Roman Catholic church is expanding.
|
members of the Church of England
▪ denomination a religious group that has slightly different beliefs from other groups who belong to the same religion:
Our staff come from churches of all denominations.
|
Several denominations have developed among Jews.
▪ sect a religious group that has separated from a larger group:
He is a leader in the powerful Ansar Sunni Muslim sect.
▪ cult an extreme religious group that is not part of an established religion:
Members of the cult all committed suicide on the same day.