chaplain

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a member of the clergy or another religious representative appointed to serve an institution, group, or private household

   The hospital chaplain offered support to patients of several faiths.

2. 2
   noun

   a nonreligious adviser who provides comparable pastoral or emotional care within an organization

   The university appointed a humanist chaplain for students seeking secular support.

From Middle English chapeleyn, through Old French chapelain, from Medieval Latin cappellanus. The Latin word was connected with cappella ("chapel"), originally the shrine housing the cloak of Saint Martin of Tours; its custodian's title broadened to clergy serving a chapel or institution.

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