rabbi

noun

rab·​bi ˈra-ˌbī 

1

: master, teacher

—used by Jews as a term of address

2

: a Jew qualified to expound and apply the halacha and other Jewish law

3

: a Jew trained and ordained for professional religious leadership

specifically : the official leader of a Jewish congregation

Examples of rabbi in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Among those killed was another local rabbi, a 10-year-old girl and a man who survived the Holocaust. —Tucker Reals, CBS News, 15 Dec. 2025

Eli Schlanger, assistant rabbi at Chabad of Bondi and a key organizer of the event, was among those killed. —Michael Collins, USA Today, 15 Dec. 2025

Chabad, an Orthodox Jewish movement that runs outreach worldwide and sponsors events during major Jewish holidays, identified one of the dead as Rabbi Eli Schlanger, assistant rabbi at Chabad of Bondi and an organizer of the event. —Arkansas Online, 15 Dec. 2025

Hours earlier, two gunmen opened fire on a Hanukkah by the Sea celebration near Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, killing at least 16 people including a rabbi and a holocaust survivor. —Hannah Ruhoff, Sacbee.com, 15 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English, from Late Latin, from Greek rhabbi, from Hebrew rabbī my master, from rabh master + -ī my

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for rabbi

• apply
• awry
• belie
• bely
• bigeye
• bonsai
• buckeye
• comply
• coxae
• decry
• defy
• deny

Kids Definition

rabbi

noun

rab·​bi ˈrab-ˌī 

1

: master entry 1 sense 1a, teacher

—used as a term of address for Jewish religious leaders

2

: a professionally trained leader of a Jewish congregation

rabbinic

rə-ˈbin-ik, 

ra-

adjective

or rabbinical

-i-kəl

Etymology

Old English rabbi "term of address used for Jewish religious leaders," from Latin rabbi (same meaning), from Greek rhabbi (same meaning), from Hebrew rabbī "my master," from rabh "master" and the suffix -ī "my"