churchwarden

English

Etymology

church +‎ warden

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU):

  (file)

Noun

churchwarden (plural churchwardens)

1. (British) A lay officer of the Church of England who handles the secular affairs of the parish.
   • 1933, George Orwell, chapter 31, in Down and Out in Paris and London‎^[1]:

     At first, not knowing any better, I used sometimes to copy a nude on the pavement. The first I did was outside St Martin's-in-the-Fields church. A fellow in black—I suppose he was a churchwarden or something—came out in a tearing rage.

2. (US) A similar functionary of the Episcopal church.
3. (UK, slang) A churchwarden pipe.
   • W. Black

     There was a small wooden table placed in front of the smoldering fire, with decanters, a jar of tobacco, and two long churchwardens.

Derived terms

• churchwarden pipe
• churchwardenship

Translations

lay officer who handles secular affairs of the parish

• Armenian: եկեղեցպան (hy) (ekeġecʻpan)
• Danish: kirkeværge c
• Dutch: kerkmeester m, kerkvoogd (nl) m (historical), kerkmeesteres f
• Finnish: kirkonisäntä, kirkkoväärti (fi) (historical)
• French: marguillier (fr) m, marguillière (fr) f
• German: Kirchenvorsteher m, Kirchenvorsteherin f
• Norman: seurvillant d'l'Êglyise m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: kirkeverge m

  Nynorsk: kyrkjeverje f

• Russian: кти́тор (ru) m (ktítor), церко́вный ста́роста m (cerkóvnyj stárosta)
• Spanish: capiller m, capillero m
• Swedish: kyrkvärd c

See also

• vestry