clergyman

noun

cler·​gy·​man ˈklər-jē-mən How to pronounce clergyman (audio)
plural clergymen
: a member of the clergy

Examples of clergyman in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The tragedy inspired a poem by twelve-year-old Benjamin Franklin and a funeral oration by the scourging Puritan clergyman Cotton Mather. Dorothy Wickenden, The New Yorker, 30 Oct. 2023 The volume was a book of devotional poems by English poet and clergyman George Herbert, who had died in March 1633 at age 39, likely of tuberculosis. V.m. Braganza, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Aug. 2023 In 1857 three stories about Anglican clergymen were published anonymously in Blackwood’s Magazine. Namwali Serpell, The New York Review of Books, 12 Oct. 2023 Her father was an Anglican clergyman; her mother was a homemaker and daughter of Plymouth Brethren missionaries in China who were killed during the xenophobic Boxer Rebellion at the turn of the century. Brian Murphy, Washington Post, 4 Oct. 2023 At last, the clergyman hit upon what seemed an excellent idea for subduing the Andaman Home’s rambunctious inmates. Adam Goodheart, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 Sep. 2023 Several local human rights activists, including lawyers and a clergyman viewed as critical of the government, were denied accreditation to observe the vote. Farai Mutsaka, The Christian Science Monitor, 23 Aug. 2023 Several local human rights activists, including lawyers and a clergyman viewed as critical of the government, also were denied accreditation to observe the vote. Farai Mutsaka, BostonGlobe.com, 23 Aug. 2023 Negroes and Whites, housewives and Hollywood stars, senators and a few beatniks, clergymen and probably a few Communists. Kerry Breen, CBS News, 26 Aug. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clergyman.' 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

1577, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of clergyman was in 1577

Dictionary Entries Near clergyman

Cite this Entry

“Clergyman.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clergyman. Accessed 30 Nov. 2023.

Kids Definition

clergyman

noun
cler·​gy·​man ˈklər-ji-mən How to pronounce clergyman (audio)
: a member of the clergy
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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