clergy

English

Etymology

Attested in the 13th Century CE; from clergie, from Old French clergié (“learned men”), from Latin clericatus, from Latin clericus (“one ordained for religious services”), from Ancient Greek κληρικός (klērikos, “of the clergy”).

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈklɜːrdʒi/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɜː(r)dʒi

Noun

clergy (plural clergies)

1. Body of persons, such as ministers, priests and rabbis, who are trained and ordained for religious service.

Derived terms

• clergyman

Related terms

• cleric
• clerical
• clerk

Translations

people trained to officiate at religious ceremonies and services

Croatian: klȇr (hr) m., svèćenstvo (hr) n. Czech: duchovenstvo (cs) n. Finnish: papisto (fi) French: clergé (fr) German: Geistlichkeit (de) f., Klerus (de) m. Greek: κλήρος [ˈkli.ro̞s] m., ιερατείο [i.e̞.ra.ˈti.o̞] n. Hungarian: papság (hu)

Italian: clero (it) m. Maltese: kleru (mt) Polish: duchowieństwo n. Russian: духовенство (ru) (duxov'énstvo) n. Serbian: sveštenstvo n. Spanish: clero (es) m. Swedish: prästerskap (sv)

References

• “clergy” in the Online Etymology Dictionary, Douglas Harper, 2001