clergywoman

noun

Definition of clergywomannext
as in clergyman

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of clergywoman Patterson, an ordained clergywoman with a background in healthcare, joined the Legislature via a special election in 2020. — oregonlive, 8 Nov. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clergywoman
  1. clergyman
  2. priestess
  3. deaconess
  4. bishop
  5. churchman
  6. clergyperson
  7. priest
  8. archbishop
Noun
  • The seeds are then planted in California, where Eddie Anderson, a clergyman, political organizer and the founder of Freedom Farms Collective, helps oversee their growth.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Costco ditches its Kirkland beer Pope Leo XIV, who grew up listening to popular American television preacher Archbishop Fulton Sheen, praised his fellow Illinois clergyman as an inspiration today on the eve of Sheen’s beatification.
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of clergyman
Noun
  • The oracle was a priestess who entered a trance state to convey answers from Apollo, the Greek god of prophecy.
    — Ambuj Tewari, The Conversation, 29 Sep. 2026
  • The episode explores the story of Madame LaLaurie (Kathy Bates), her cruel actions, and what voodoo priestess Marie Laveau (Angela Bassett) did to her.
    — Kaycee Sloan, Cincinnati Enquirer, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of priestess
Noun
  • Then in 1964, Parks became a deaconess in the African Methodist Episcopal Church.
    — Jacqueline Howard, CNN, 22 Feb. 2025
  • In her younger years, Webb was an avid churchgoer in Baltimore, Maryland alongside her father, a deacon, and her mother, a deaconess, who met in a church choir.
    — Robyn Mowatt, ELLE, 22 June 2023
Definition of deaconess
Noun
  • On April 18, 1049, the pope exempted a nunnery in Alsace – now in Sainte-Croix-en-Plaine, France – from the legal authority and supervision of the local bishop.
    — Joëlle Rollo-Koster, The Conversation, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Warren Jeffs then appointed Nephi Jeffs, another brother, as bishop.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of bishop
Noun
  • Meanwhile, churchmen claimed the authority to restrain violence, encouraged just wars and threatened violent behaviors with spiritual sanctions.
    — Joëlle Rollo-Koster, Fortune, 15 Apr. 2026
  • Not all birth rituals depended on the intercession of a saint or the authority of a churchman.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Mar. 2026
Definition of churchman
Noun
  • Seven top clergypersons of the Armenian Apostolic Church, including the church head, Karekin II, have been charged with crimes related to the church’s refusal to restore a mutinous bishop.
    — Fred Weir, Christian Science Monitor, 15 Sep. 2026
  • What makes the family tradition sustainable in central Massachusetts, where the Vallelis now live, is a pastor-sharing arrangement between two congregations that couldn’t afford a full-time clergyperson on their own.
    — G. Jeffrey MacDonald, The Christian Science Monitor, 14 Apr. 2020
Definition of clergyperson
Noun
  • The Vatican has long looked the other way when priests were accused of abuse involving adults, especially if the priests were bishops.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Jeremy Irons co-stars as Jesuit priest Father Gabriel, who challenges Mendoza to undergo penance.
    — Laura Zornosa, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of priest
Noun
  • Bishop’s Lodge dates to the 1860s when Santa Fe’s first archbishop, Bishop Jean Baptiste Lamy, built a chapel and private residence here.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026
  • The pilgrims were going to a prayer site in Nakuru County, west of the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, said Martin Kivuva, archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Mombasa.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of archbishop

Browse Nearby Words

clergypersons
clergywoman
clergywomen
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Clergywoman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clergywoman. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of deportment

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
a cup of tea and a golf ball on tee side by side
Quiz: Sounds Like... Choose the word that sounds like it fits the clue...
See All