different between priestess vs acolyte

English

Alternative forms

• priestress (now chiefly US, nonstandard)

Etymology

From priest +? -ess. Compare Middle English preesteresse (“priestess”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /pri??st?s/, /?pri??stes/

Noun

priestess (plural priestesses, masculine priest)

1. A woman with religious duties and responsibilities in certain non-Christian religions.
2. (religious slur, uncommon) A female Christian priest or minister, typically in a Protestant, Old Catholic, or independent Catholic denomination.
3. (colloquial, obsolete) A priest’s wife.

Usage notes

Chiefly with regard to ancient or Pagan religions, or metaphorically. In Protestant denominations that admit women to the priesthood, such as Anglicanism, they are generally referred to as priests.

Synonyms

• (female non-Christian religious figure): kahuna, mamaloi, mambo
• (priest’s wife): presbytera, presbyteress

Hyponyms

• (female non-Christian religious figure): bacchante, high priestess

Derived terms

• high priestess
• priestesshood
• priestesslike

Translations

Verb

priestess (third-person singular simple present priestesses, present participle priestessing, simple past and past participle priestessed)

1. (transitive) To oversee (a pagan ceremony, etc.) as priestess.

   • Ye Ye Ife, a gifted feminist ritualist and priestess of Oshun from San Diego, trained in the Yoruba tradition, designed and priestessed the ritual with me.

   • 2014, John C. Sulak, Carl Llewellyn Weschcke, Oberon Zell, The Wizard and the Witch: Seven Decades of Counterculture, Magick & Paganism

     I priestessed the ceremony. I played Hecate. One time I played Demeter and my daughter played Persephone.

See also

• abbatess, abbess, abbotess
• adoratrice
• domina
• Mother
• Mother Superior, mother superior
• prioress

English

Etymology

Late Middle English, from Old French acolyt and Late Latin acolythus, from Ancient Greek ????????? (akólouthos, “follower, attendant”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?æ.k?.la?t/

Noun

acolyte (plural acolytes)

1. (Christianity) One who has received the highest of the four minor orders in the Catholic Church, being ordained to carry the wine, water and lights at Mass.
2. (Christianity) An altar server.
3. An attendant, assistant or follower.

Synonyms

(assistant): sidekick

Translations

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2021) , “acolyte”, in Online Etymology Dictionary

Anagrams

• cotylae

French

Alternative forms

• acolythe (obsolete)

Etymology

From Old French acolyt, from Ecclesiastical Latin acolytus, from Ancient Greek ????????? (akólouthos, “follower, attendant”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /a.k?.lit/

Noun

acolyte m (plural acolytes)

1. (religion) acolyte
2. henchman, sidekick

Further reading

• “acolyte” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).