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clerical collar
noun
: a narrow stiffly upright white collar worn buttoned at the back of the neck by members of the clergy
Examples of clerical collar in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The top and bottoms of a tracksuit are made of a silk blend with a white and navy colorway that nods to a clerical collar.
—Nicole Demarco Dalya Benor Caitie Kelly Juan A. Ramírez Monica Mendal Janet Siroto, New York Times, 14 Mar. 2024
Come for the great tailoring and stay for the kinky clerical collars, open back shirts, and bikini-esque overlays.
—Nicole Phelps, Vogue, 13 Feb. 2024
As a pair, Tutu and his wife Leah also cut impressively stylish figures, with the former regularly wearing tailoring with a pink shirt and white clerical collar, and the latter favoring the vibrant colors and bold patterns of traditional South African dress.
—Liam Hess, Vogue, 26 Dec. 2021
He’s accompanied by another man of the cloth, this gentleman slightly older, a white clerical collar peeking out from his rain jacket.
—Gregg Doyel, The Indianapolis Star, 18 July 2022
The white-haired cardinal appeared in court with his walking stick, wearing a clerical collar and a cross around his neck.
—Elaine Yu, WSJ, 25 Nov. 2022
The eastern parson spider, named for the way the white patch on its black abdomen resembles a clerical collar.
—Adam Roy, Outside Online, 26 Oct. 2022
Bishop Zanchetta, wearing a dark suit, clerical collar and mask, mostly looked down as the verdict was read.
—Silvina Frydlewsky and Francis X. Rocca, WSJ, 4 Mar. 2022
Then, just before lunchtime, another worker emerges from a backroom, wearing a black sweater and clerical collar.
—Washington Post, 15 Oct. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clerical collar.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1948, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near clerical collar
Cite this Entry
“Clerical collar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clerical%20collar. Accessed 15 Jun. 2024.
Kids Definition
clerical collar
noun
: a narrow stiffly upright white collar worn by members of the clergy
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