minister

1 of 2

noun

min·​is·​ter ˈmi-nə-stər How to pronounce minister (audio)
1
: agent
the angels are ministers of the divine willH. P. Liddon
2
a
: one officiating or assisting the officiant in church worship
b
: a clergyman or clergywoman especially of a Protestant communion
3
a
: the superior (see superior entry 2 sense 1) of one of several religious orders

called also minister-general

b
: the assistant to the rector or the bursar of a Jesuit house
4
: a high officer of state entrusted with the management of a division of governmental activities
the British Minister of Defence
5
a
: a diplomatic representative (such as an ambassador) accredited to the court (see court entry 1 sense 1c) or seat of government of a foreign state
b
: a diplomatic representative ranking below an ambassador

minister

2 of 2

verb

ministered; ministering ˈmi-nə-st(ə-)riŋ How to pronounce minister (audio)

intransitive verb

1
: to function as a minister of religion
2
: to give aid or service
minister to the sick

Examples of minister in a Sentence

Noun the British ministers at the international peace conference our minister gives an interesting sermon every week
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Sunak’s chancellor, or finance minister, Jeremy Hunt made the announcements during his spring budget speech. Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Mar. 2024 New Delhi/Hong Kong CNN — Taiwan has swung into damage control mode after its labor minister made controversial comments about the skin color, religion and diets of some Indians ahead of a potential drive to recruit migrant workers to the island. Diksha Madhok, CNN, 5 Mar. 2024 That year, the Japanese Cabinet Office appointed a minister for loneliness and social isolation to address this situation. Oscar Espinosa, The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Mar. 2024 Photos published from the event showed the 68-year-old Microsoft co-founder and the philanthropist chatting with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and posing for a picture with Indian federal minister Smriti Irani. Anna Lazarus Caplan, Peoplemag, 4 Mar. 2024 China's government ministers typically hold their posts for five years, but Qin Gang was dismissed as foreign minister last year after only a few months on the job. Ken Moritsugu, Quartz, 3 Mar. 2024 Teo, a 61-year-old first-time lawmaker, and his eight Cabinet ministers were sworn into office Wednesday, a month after general elections in the strategically significant nation of 11,500 people halfway between Australia and Hawaii. Rod McGuirk The Associated Press, arkansasonline.com, 3 Mar. 2024 Venezuela and Mexico’s foreign affairs ministers also signed a migration agreement before President Maduro, including points on repatriations. Elias Ferrer, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2024 The private sector must encourage ministers toward constructive engagement and raise the most salient issues to their attention. Thani Al Zeyoudi, Fortune, 23 Feb. 2024
Verb
Jor-El’s mother, Theresa Sellars, ministered the ceremony in a Supergirl costume. Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024 The priests had spent the last two decades ministering to U.S. military personnel, veterans, and their beneficiaries at the medical center. Heather Hunter, Washington Examiner, 9 Apr. 2023 The couple, along with Elizabeth Lumpkin, were active members of the Great Banquet, a Christian religious leadership program that ministered in jails and elsewhere. John Tuohy, The Indianapolis Star, 6 Apr. 2023 Lentz, who once ministered to Justin Bieber and other stars, was a pastor at Hillsong, until he was fired in 2020 after having an extramarital affair. Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 30 Mar. 2023 The ultimate goal is to replicate the entire job of the pancreatic control system, so that patients will no longer have to minister to themselves. Boris Kovatchev, IEEE Spectrum, 21 Nov. 2021 While many believe Patrick was responsible for bringing Christianity to Ireland, History.com reports his mission was to minister to existing Irish Christians as well as convert non-Christians. Clare Mulroy, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2023 Deprived of face-to-face contact with his parishioners during the height of the pandemic, Michael Coren, an Anglican priest, had to get creative to minister to the sick, the dying, the elderly, and the lonely. Krista Stevens, Longreads, 19 Jan. 2023 The trip will also allow Francis to minister to Bahrain’s Catholic community, which numbers around 80,000 in a country of around 1.5 million. Nicole Winfield, ajc, 3 Nov. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'minister.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English ministre "servant, ecclesiastic, priest, official serving a superior, agent," borrowed from Anglo-French & Medieval Latin; Anglo-French, borrowed from Medieval Latin minister "servant, ecclesiastic (short for Deī minister "servant of god"), agent, official," going back to Latin, "servant, priest's attendant, agent," formed from minor-, minus "less, lesser" (with the suffix of location and opposition -ter) after magister "manager, master entry 1" — more at minus entry 1

Verb

Middle English ministren, borrowed from Anglo-French ministrer, borrowed from Latin ministrāre "to act as a servant, serve, supply" (Late Latin, "to serve as an ecclesiastic"), derivative of minister "servant, minister entry 1"

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of minister was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near minister

Cite this Entry

“Minister.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/minister. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

minister

1 of 2 noun
min·​is·​ter ˈmin-ə-stər How to pronounce minister (audio)
1
a
: one who performs religious ceremonies in church services
b
: a member of the clergy of a Protestant church
2
: a high official who heads a department of the government
3
: a government representative in a foreign country

minister

2 of 2 verb
ministered; ministering
-st(ə-)riŋ
: to give aid : serve
minister to the sick
ministration
ˌmin-ə-ˈstrā-shən
noun

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