as in priest
a person specially trained and authorized to conduct religious services in a Christian church
clerics were sharply divided on the issue of whether the war was morally justified
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Recent Examples of cleric
Iran will never bow to foreign pressure over its nuclear program, senior cleric Ahmad Khatami said Friday, warning that the country’s uranium enrichment is a nonnegotiable symbol of national sovereignty.
—
Amir Daftari, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
That exquisitely rare skill — the ability to arrange a handful of ordinary notes in a way that makes time stop and pulses quicken — unites long-anonymous troubadours, symphonists, Broadway entertainers, earnest singer-songwriters, griots, and ancient clerics.
—Justin Davidson, Vulture, 30 Sep. 2025
Sheikh Abdulaziz Al Asheikh was the third cleric to hold the position since the country’s founding, serving three kings during an era of major cultural and political transformation in Saudi Arabia and the region.
—Mohammed Sergie, semafor.com, 24 Sep. 2025
The economy is the top challenge for Iran’s ruling clerics, who fear a revival of protests that have erupted since 2017 by lower and middle-income communities angry at growing poverty because of sanctions, mismanagement and state corruption.
—Parisa Hafezi, USA Today, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cleric
Amir Daftari, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
That exquisitely rare skill — the ability to arrange a handful of ordinary notes in a way that makes time stop and pulses quicken — unites long-anonymous troubadours, symphonists, Broadway entertainers, earnest singer-songwriters, griots, and ancient clerics.
—Justin Davidson, Vulture, 30 Sep. 2025
Sheikh Abdulaziz Al Asheikh was the third cleric to hold the position since the country’s founding, serving three kings during an era of major cultural and political transformation in Saudi Arabia and the region.
—Mohammed Sergie, semafor.com, 24 Sep. 2025
The economy is the top challenge for Iran’s ruling clerics, who fear a revival of protests that have erupted since 2017 by lower and middle-income communities angry at growing poverty because of sanctions, mismanagement and state corruption.
—Parisa Hafezi, USA Today, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cleric
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cleric
Noun
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The man, named as 69-year-old Morimasa Hibino by the Japanese embassy, was spotted in the ditch next to the monument about seven meters (23 feet) below the street level by a priest who alerted authorities.—
Barbie Latza Nadeau,
CNN Money,
25 Oct. 2025
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The paranormal investigators claim to have been summoned by a priest named Father Cooke when two young women — Donna and Angie — wanted to perform an exorcism to get rid of the spirit of a dead 7-year-old girl named Annabelle Higgins, who had inhabited their doll.—
Stephanie Sengwe,
PEOPLE,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
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And there’s always a hint of the preacher in his speaking appearances.—
Belinda Luscombe,
Time,
3 Nov. 2025
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Others said preachers twisted scripture to silence them.—
Mike Hixenbaugh,
NBC news,
30 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cleric.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cleric. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
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