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minister definition

min·is·ter (min′is tər)

noun

  1. a person acting for another as agent and carrying out given orders or designs; specif.,
    1. a person appointed by the head of a government to take charge of some department
    2. a diplomatic officer sent to a foreign nation to represent his or her government, usually ranking below an ambassador
    1. anyone authorized to carry out or assist in the spiritual functions of a church
    2. an ordained member of a Protestant church; esp., a pastor
  3. the superior of certain Roman Catholic religious orders
  4. a person or thing thought of as serving as the agent of some power, force, etc. a minister of evil

Etymology: OFr ministre < L minister, an attendant, servant, in LL(Ec), Christian preacher < base of L minor, minor: formed prob. after magister, master

transitive verb

  1. to supply; provide
  2. to administer

Etymology: ME ministren < OFr ministrer < L ministrare

intransitive verb

  1. to serve as a minister in a church
  2. to give help (to)

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

minister Synonyms

minister

n.

  1. One authorized to conduct Christian worship

    pastor, parson, preacher, clergyman, rector, monk, abbot, prelate, curate, vicar, deacon, chaplain, pulpiteer, servant of God, shepherd, churchman, cleric, padre, ecclesiastic, bishop, archbishop, suffragan, confessor, reverend, dean, archdeacon, abbé, curé, prebendary, canon, diocesan, primate, metropolitan, reverence, reader, lecturer, divine, shepherd, Bible-reader, missionary, Bible thumper*, evangelist, sky pilot*, black coat*, psalm singer*; see also priest.

    Antonyms layman*, church member, parishioner. *

  2. A high servant of the state

    cabinet member, ambassador, consul, liaison officer; see diplomat 1, representative 1, statesman.


minister

v.

administer to, tend, wait on; see help 1.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

minister Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • ordain: He is an ordained minister of the gospel of Christ.

Adjective modifier

  • prime: A senior Scottish Labor MP said the prime minister must stop defying public opinion over the crisis in Lebanon.

Modifies a noun

  • cardenas: Pianists cyrus chestnut of the above minister alberto cardenas.

Followed by an intransitive particle

  • unto: Jesus came into the world not to be ministered unto but to minister and give His life a ransom for many.

Preposition: until

  • superannuation: On his return to England he worked as a circuit minister until superannuation in 1937.

Preposition: of

  • gospel: He is an ordained minister of the gospel of Christ.

Noun used with modifier

  • cabinet: Blair has made his cabinet ministers pay for mistakes they have made.
minister usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

minister quotes

Oh! that desert were my dwelling-place, With one fair spirit for my minister, That I might all forget the human race, And, hating no one, love but only her!

-Rochdale

I have not become the King's First Minister in order to preside over the liquidation of the British Empire.

-Churchill, Lord Randolph Henry Spencer

My Minister's room is like a padded cell, and in certain ways I am like a person who is suddenly certified a lunatic and put safely into this great, vast room, cut off from real life.Of course they don't behave quite like nurses, because the Civil Service is profoundly deferentialö'Yes, Minister! No, Minister! If you wish it, Minister!'

-Crossman, Richard Howard Stafford

minister quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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"minister." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/minister>

APA Style

minister. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/minister

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