ecclesiastic

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a member of the clergy, especially in a Christian church; formal

   The visiting ecclesiastic addressed the congregation after the service.

2. 2
   adj

   of or relating to the Christian church or its clergy; less common than ecclesiastical

   The archive preserves both royal decrees and ecclesiastic records.

From Middle English ecclesyastyke, through Late Latin ecclesiasticus from Greek ekklesiastikos, 'of the assembly or church.' The Greek base ekklesia first meant an assembly and became the standard word for the Christian church.

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