Meanings
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1
noun
A building where Christians meet to worship.
There is a lovely little church in the valley.
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2
noun
A religious service held in a church.
Don't be late for church on Sunday.
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3
noun
A particular branch or organization of the Christian religion.
The Church of England separated from the Roman Catholic Church in 1534.
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4
noun
The group of people who attend or belong to a particular church.
Our church is hosting a picnic next week.
Thesaurus
Common collocations
Etymology
From Middle English chirche, from Old English ċiriċe (“church”), from Proto-West Germanic *kirikā, an early borrowing of Ancient Greek κυριακόν (kuriakón), neuter form of κυριακός (kuriakós, “belonging to the lord”), from κύριος (kúrios, “ruler, lord”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱewh₁- (“to swell, spread out, be strong, prevail”). Doublet of kirk. additional etymological information For vowel evolution, see bury. Ancient Greek κυριακόν (kuriakón) was used of houses of Christian worship since circa 300 CE, especially in the East, though it was less common in this sense than ἐκκλησία (ekklēsía,…