/ ˈmɪnɪstə(r); NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
1.
(often Minister ) ( BrE ) (in Britain and many other countries) a senior member of the government who is in charge of a government department or a branch of one :
the Minister of Education
a meeting of EU Foreign Ministers
senior ministers in the Cabinet
cabinet ministers
—see also first minister , prime minister
2.
( in some Protestant Christian Churches ) a trained religious leader :
a Methodist minister
—compare pastor , priest , vicar
3.
a person, lower in rank than an ambassador , whose job is to represent their government in a foreign country
■ verb
•
PHRASAL VERBS
- minister to sb/sth
••
WORD ORIGIN
Middle English (in sense 2; also in the sense a person acting under the authority of another ): from Old French ministre (noun), ministrer (verb), from Latin minister servant, from minus less.