/ priːst; NAmE / noun
1.
a person who is qualified to perform religious duties and ceremonies in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Orthodox Churches :
a parish priest
the ordination of women priests
—compare chaplain , clergyman , minister , vicar
2.
( feminine priest·ess / ˈpriːstes; NAmE /) a person who performs religious ceremonies in some religions that are not Christian
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WORD ORIGIN
Old English prēost , of Germanic origin; related to Dutch priester , German Priester , based on ecclesiastical Latin presbyter elder, from Greek presbuteros elder (used in the New Testament to denote an elder of the early church), comparative of presbus old (man).