chaplain

IPA/ˈtʃæplɪn/
KK[tʃˈæplən]IPA/ˈtʃæplɪn/

chaplain — noun

  • chaplainsingular
  • chaplainsplural

1. someone sent by a Christian church to offer prayer, worship, and spiritual suppo

1.nounC1
Definition

someone sent by a Christian church to offer prayer, worship, and spiritual support in places such as hospitals, prisons, schools, or the military

Example

The prison chaplain spoke with Baraka after the difficult court hearing.

collocation: prison chaplain

Sana thanked the hospital chaplain for praying with her before surgery.

collocation: hospital chaplain

Common collocations
  • prison chaplain
  • hospital chaplain
  • school chaplain
  • army chaplain
  • serve as chaplain
  • work as chaplain
Synonyms
  • priest

    focuses on ordained rank and religious duties, not on serving a particular institution

  • pastor

    more often suggests the regular leader of a church congregation

  • minister

    broad Christian title that does not itself imply an institutional post

  • cleric

    formal general word for a religious official of the clergy

Grammar Patterns

institution + chaplain

serve or work as a chaplain

chaplain to + group or household

Usage Note

Often follows the name of the institution or group being served, as in prison chaplain, school chaplain, or army chaplain. Distinguish from priest or pastor: a chaplain is identified by serving a particular institution rather than leading an ordinary church congregation.

Common Mistakes

The school priest gave the welcome speech to new students.
The school chaplain gave the welcome speech to new students.
use 'chaplain' when the minister serves a school, hospital, prison, or military unit.

Word family

  • chaplaincy
    nounC2
  • chaplainship
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Chaplain is defined more by where the person serves than by religious rank. A priest or pastor usually leads a regular church congregation, while a chaplain works inside an institution such as a hospital, prison, school, or military unit and supports the people there. Minister is a broader Christian title and can describe someone connected with church work, but it does not by itself suggest an institutional post. Cleric is even wider and sounds more formal, since it can refer to almost any ordained religious worker. So a priest may lead Sunday worship in a parish church, but a hospital chaplain visits patients at their bedsides and prays with worried family members.

priest ↗pastor ↗minister ↗cleric ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • serve as chaplain
  • work as a chaplain
  • the school chaplain
  • the prison chaplain
  • the hospital chaplain

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinMedieval LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

Chaplain is related to chapel. It entered English through Old French from Medieval Latin cappellanus, a word for a cleric attached to a chapel. That Latin form was built from cappella, meaning a small chapel or shrine. In English, the meaning widened from a chapel priest to a religious worker assigned to places such as schools, hospitals, prisons, and military units.

First known use

12th century

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2