choir

B1 Topic:People & Society

US /kwaɪɚ/ UK /kwaɪə(ɹ)/ See IPA manual

Homophones

quire /ˈkwaɪɚ/

Freq #5929

Meanings

1

noun
A group of people who sing together, especially in a church or at a concert.

The church choir practices on Thursday nights.
2

noun
The part of a large church where the choir sits and sings.

The candles flickered in the choir during the evening service.

Thesaurus

Word family

Forms choirs

Derived forms antechoirantichoirchoirboychoirchildchoirgirlchoirleaderchoirlesschoirlikechoirmanchoirmasterchoirmatechoirmistress

Related forms choral chorus quire

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

choir loft
a raised gallery in a church where the choir sings

Noun + noun

Idioms (1)

See all

preach to the choir
to try to convince people who already agree with you

Simplified etymology

Choir entered Middle English in spellings with q from Old French quer, which came from Latin chorus. The modern ch spelling developed in the 17th century under renewed Latin influence.

Etymology

From Middle English quer, quere, from Old French quer, from Latin chorus, from Ancient Greek χορός (khorós, “company of dancers or singers”). Modern spelling influenced by chorus and French chœur. Doublet of quire, chorus, and hora.

quer Middle English chorus Latin χορός Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

People & Society

External links

# choir

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /kwaɪɚ/
**IPA (UK):** /kwaɪə(ɹ)/
**Frequency rank:** 5929

## Meanings
1. A group of people who sing together, especially in a church or at a concert.
2. The part of a large church where the choir sits and sings.

## Examples
- The church choir practices on Thursday nights.
- The candles flickered in the choir during the evening service.

## Derived Forms
- antechoir
- antichoir
- choirboy
- choirchild
- choirgirl
- choirleader
- choirless
- choirlike
- choirman
- choirmaster
- choirmate
- choirmistress

## Related Forms
- choral
- chorus
- quire

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: quer
- Root: chorus
- Root: χορός

## Etymology
From Middle English quer, quere, from Old French quer, from Latin chorus, from Ancient Greek χορός (khorós, “company of dancers or singers”). Modern spelling influenced by chorus and French chœur. Doublet of quire, chorus, and hora.

## AI Etymology
choir is a noun, verb, and name. It is from Middle English quer, quere, from Old French quer, from Latin chorus, from Ancient Greek χορός (khorós, “company of dancers or singers”). Modern spelling influenced by chorus and French chœur. Doublet of quire, chorus, and hora. Historical forms in the chain include quer (Middle English), quer (Old French), chorus (Latin), and χορός (Ancient Greek). Current senses include a group of people who sing together, especially in a church or at a concert and the part of a large church where the choir sits and sings. Derived forms include antechoir, antichoir, choirboy, choirchild, and choirgirl. Related words include choral, chorus, and quire.

## Topics
- People & Society

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