Cleric

How to spell cleric

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce cleric

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does cleric mean?

1. nounA member of the clergy, such as a priest, minister, or other ordained religious official.

Cleric in a sentence

• The local cleric led the funeral service at the small chapel.

• A senior cleric advised the government on matters of religious law.

Where does cleric come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word comes from the Latin clericus, meaning 'a clergyman' or 'priest', which the Romans borrowed from the Greek klerikos. That Greek adjective was built on kleros, which literally meant 'a lot' or 'an allotted portion', the kind cast like dice to divide an inheritance. Early Christians described their ordained ministers as God's 'portion' or 'allotted share', so the men set apart for the church came to be called the klerikoi. English absorbed the word in the Middle Ages, and the very same root gave us the everyday 'clerk', because in centuries past the literate men who kept written records were almost always churchmen. Remembering that 'cleric' and 'clerk' are twins from the same source helps fix the spelling, since both keep the cler- stem before their endings.

How the word is built

• cleric (from Latin clericus: clergyman, priest)
• (built on Greek kleros: a lot, an inheritance)