PRESBYTER Synonyms: 58 Similar and Opposite Words

presbyter

noun

Definition of presbyter

as in bishop

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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 presbyter This would be the case also for an apostate, heretic, schismatic bishop, presbyter, or deacon. — Fr. Goran Jovicic, National Review, 13 June 2021 Before coming to Birmingham, Webster had served 18 years as executive presbyter of the Presbytery of Sierra Blanca in southern New Mexico. — Greg Garrison, AL.com, 19 July 2017

Recent Examples of Synonyms for presbyter

Noun

On the front lines during natural disasters Janinna Sesa, former director of Caritas Chiclayo, worked with the bishop for eight years, including during the pandemic, the flooding caused by the coastal El Niño in 2017, and Cyclone Yaku in 2023.

— Claudia Rebaza, CNN Money, 11 Nov. 2026
His last stop is Peru, where Leo holds citizenship and spent two decades as a missionary and bishop.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 7 Nov. 2026

Definition of bishop

Noun

The group was founded in 1970 in Switzerland by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, a French prelate, but five years later was officially suppressed by the Bishop of Fribourg.

— Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 30 June 2026
In roughly 33 hours over the course of two days, the diverse group of international prelates elected Prevost on the fourth ballot.

— Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2026

Definition of prelate

Noun

Identifying an abbot Rodwell found the bones were still jumbled together inside the coffin, which was hewn from a single block of limestone and measured about 7 feet (2 meters) long, with walls about 4 inches (10 centimeters) thick on average.

— Mindy Weisberger, CNN Money, 2 Nov. 2026
Variations on this legend suggest that the monk had broken his monastic vows, that the creation of the book in a single night was a deal offered by the monastery’s abbot, and that the book was intended to glorify his monastery.

— Laura Payne, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of abbot

Noun

After Mass, Leo surprised the crowds with a brief appearance on the balcony of the archbishop’s residence in downtown Córdoba, the same balcony from which John Paul II greeted Córdoba in 1987.

— Nicole Winfield, Los Angeles Times, 10 Nov. 2026
The Argentine Jesuit, the former archbishop of Buenos Aires, never returned home during his 12-year pontificate, confounding friends and foes alike.

— Nicole Winfield, Chicago Tribune, 8 Nov. 2026

Definition of archbishop

Noun

Steven Freedman, associate dean of admissions at the University of Kansas School of Law, said the loans are important to help provide access to all students.

— Heather Hollingsworth, Chicago Tribune, 6 Nov. 2026
The strike has also been backed by labor unions, university deans, churches, artists, athletes, international media organizations and others.

— ABC News, ABC News, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of dean

Noun

Earlier this week, Reverend Jeff Hood, an Arkansas pastor, asked for Donalds to put a 6-month moratorium on executions.

— News Editor, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Nov. 2026
Kiribati lawmaker Kaotitaake Rakoroa told news outlets the survivors were taken in by a local church pastor, who provided immediate shelter and care.

— Khloe Quill, FOXNews.com, 12 Nov. 2026

Definition of pastor

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

The first is the strikingly Gothic diocesan throne, which sits in the cathedral choir and dates from the Victorian era.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 25 Mar. 2026
The diocesan website includes a statement from Dallas Bishop Edward Burns connecting the need for social distancing with the story of the Good Samaritan.

— David Tarrant, Dallas News, 6 Apr. 2020

Definition of diocesan

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“Presbyter.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/presbyter. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of presbyter

noun

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