parish
/ˈpæɹɪʃ/ noun C1- An administrative part of a diocese that has its own church. · Near-synonym: vicarate
- The community attending that church; the members of the parish.
- An ecclesiastical society, usually not bounded by territorial limits, but composed of those persons who choose to unite under the charge of a particular priest, clergyman, or minister; also, loosely, the territory in which the members of a congregation live.
- A civil subdivision of a British county, often corresponding to an earlier ecclesiastical parish; a similar subdivision in Ireland.
- An administrative subdivision in the U.S. state of Louisiana that is equivalent to a county in other U.S. states.
Plural parishes
From the library
Far away we could hear the deep tones of the parish clock, which boomed out every quarter of an hour.
When you spoke last night of taking precautions I remember that it passed through my mind that this was probably the last parish in England to which the thief or thieves would be likely to turn their attention—which shows that I have still much to learn.”
--“My mind, however, is now made up on the subject; for, having received ordination at Easter, I have been so fortunate as to be distinguished by the patronage of the Right Honourable Lady Catherine de Bourgh, widow of Sir Lewis de Bourgh, whose bounty and beneficence has preferred me to the valuable rectory of this parish, where it shall be my earnest endeavour to demean myself with grateful respect towards her Ladyship, and be ever ready to perform those rites and ceremonies which are instituted by the Church of England.
She had always spoken to him as she would to any other gentleman; she made not the smallest objection to his joining in the society of the neighbourhood, nor to his leaving his parish occasionally for a week or two to visit his relations.
Other matches
Learn parish in real texts
With a free account, hover any word in the library for its meaning, hear it read aloud, save words for review timed to your memory, and see how much of each book you already know.