n.
Pronunciation: ' pas-t( ə -)r ə l; 1d is often ˌ pas-t ə - ' räl, - ' ral
Function: noun
Date: 1584
1 a : a literary work (as a poem or play) dealing with shepherds or rural life in a usually artificial manner and typically drawing a contrast between the innocence and serenity of the simple life and the misery and corruption of city and especially court life b : pastoral poetry or drama c : a rural picture or scene d : PASTORALE 1A
2 : CROSIER 1
3 : a letter of a pastor to his charge: as a : a letter addressed by a bishop to his diocese b : a letter of the house of bishops of the Protestant Episcopal Church to be read in each parish