I. ˈprēst noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English prest, preist, from Old English prēost, modification of Late Latin presbyter, from Greek presbyteros priest, elder, older, from compar. of presbys old, from a prehistoric compound whose first constituent is akin to Greek paros before, Old English first period, interval, delay, Old High German frist, Old Norse frest period, interval, delay, Greek pro before, ahead and whose second constituent is akin to Greek bous head of cattle; basic meaning: leader of the herd — more at for , cow
1. : one who performs sacrificial, ritualistic, mediatorial, interpretative, or ministerial functions especially as an authorized or ordained religious functionary or official minister of a particular religion:
a.
(1) : a member of the second order of clergy in the ancient Christian and Anglican communions ranking below a bishop and above a deacon
(2) : a member of the highest order of clergy in the Roman Catholic Church since the Reformation and in the Eastern Orthodox Church
(3) : a professional clergyman of a religious denomination : a minister of religion
(4) : a member of the Aaronic priesthood of the Mormon Church ranking above deacon and teacher and authorized to administer the sacrament of the Lord's Supper and to baptize
b. : a religious functionary who serves at the altar or performs sacrifices at the altar of a pre-Christian or non-Christian religion
ordained that the Levites should be the priests of the tabernacle
a priest of Apollo
c. : a person having a specific religious or quasi religious status (as a witch doctor or seer) in his usually primitive community
2. : a short club used by anglers to stun or kill a captured fish
3. often capitalized : a breed of fancy pigeons
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
transitive verb
: to ordain (a person) as priest : make a priest of
intransitive verb
: to perform priestly offices : serve as a priest