3777 
2. A name sometimes given to the epistle cor- 
ner of a Christian ultar .because there the server 
or minister assists the priest celebrant in mak- 
ing preparation foroffering the eucharistie sac- 
Ceremonles may ritiri-. l.i>. 
With full and holy rite i.. ministervt ''. An obsolete form of ministry. 
Shot., Tempest, iv. 1. 17. , is traciount, . A Middle English form of 
Syn. 1. Administer, Minister. See adminMer. miiiixtriiliint 
II. i/1/WH.v.Jl. To act as a minister or atten- mjnigtralt (min'is-triil), . [< F. ministral, < 
ML. ministralis, servant: see minister, n.] Per- 
taining to a minister; ministerial. Johnson. 
ministrant (min'is-trant), a. and M. [= Sp. 
Pg. mii/ixli-iinte, < L'.' ministran(t-)s, ppr. of 
ministrare, servo: see minister, r.J I. a. Min- 
istering; performing service; exercising min- 
istry of any kind. 
And call swift flights of angels miiMrant 
Array'd in glory on my cup to attend. 
Milton, P. R., U. 386. 
That gentle hermit, in my helpless woe, 
By my sick couch was busy to and fro. 
Like a strong spirit nuniitnuit of good. 
.*.//. Revolt of Islam, IT. :.. 
II. H. One who ministers; a servant or dis- 
minister 
Christ hath command* <! pn.vi-ratoin- ma>ir, acramenU 
i ...... ,,,,ixi,.,o/, hi i Innvii to I,,-, :,,, (uily tiinxht and 
guMed- w"<", I." !. i'"Hty. "i. n. 
2f. To perform; render. [Kare.] 
. . . 
dant; perform service of any kind. 
Thel ordeynd a couent, to minittre in that kirke. 
mink 
Think not that he, . . . who filled the chambers of the iky 
iili the ever-flowing sir, hutli need to use 
The ministries tbou tpeakest of. 
Bryant, Tale of Cloudland. 
3. The office or function of a minister, civil or 
ecclesiastical; the state of being a minister, in 
any sense; the exercise of a ministerial office: 
a-. 'in discharge one's ministry fail li fully ; to en- 
ter the iiiiiiixtry of the gospel; to be appointo'l 
to the ministry of war. 
I will sanctify also both Aaron and his sons, to minuter 
to me in the priest's office. Ex. xxix. 44. 
2. To afford supplies; give things needful: 
furnish means of relief or remedy. 
When saw we thee an hungered, or athlrst, or a stranger, 
or naked or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto 
thee? Mat - xxv. 44. 
Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased .' 
~ *., Macbeth, v. 8. 40. 
But Ood's sweet pity minister! 
Unto no whiter soul than hers. 
WMMier, Witch's Daughter. 
3. To contribute; be of service. 
It Is my belief that it doesn't often minitter to friend- 
ship that your friend shall know your real opinion. 
U. Jama, Jr., Harper's Mag., LXXVI. 337. 
4. To serve. [Bare.] 
The wind is now thy organist ; a clank 
(We know not whence) minister* for bell 
To mark some change of service. 
Wordsworth, Roslln Chapel. 
= 8yn. Administer to, Minuter to (see administer), con- 
tribute to, serve, assist, help, succor, wait upon. 
ministerial (min-is-te'ri-al), a. [= F. MM* 
Uriel = Sp. Pg. ministerial = It. miuisteriale, 
< LL. miiiisti-rialis, < L. ministerium, ministry: 
see ministry, ministerium.] 1. Performing ser- 
vice ; ministering or ministrant ; subservient; 
subsidiary. 
Enlight'ning Spirits and ministerial Flames. 
Prior, Solomon, i. 
penser. 
Strange ministrant of nndescribed sounds 
That come a-swooning orer hollow grounds. 
Keati, Endymlon, L 
ministration (min-is-tra'shon), n. [< ME. 
ministracioun, < OF. ministration = It. minis- 
trazione, < L. ministratio(n-), service, < minis- 
trare, pp. ministratus, serve: see minister, .] 
1. The act of ministering or serving; service. 
As soorl as the days of his mimHration were accom- 
plished. Lake 1. 23. 
2f. Administration; agency; intervention for 
aid or service. 
Thannc comforts him with minietraeiovn of cure qulnte 
essencie afore seid, and he schal be al hool, but if it be so 
that god wole algatis that he schal die. 
Book o/ QuinU Entente (ed. Furnlvall), p. IS. 
To hang a man for sixpence, threepence, I know not 
what to hang for a trifle, and pardon murder, Is In the 
ministration of the law through the ill framing of It. 
Cromuxtt, quoted in Macaulay, Hallam's Const Hist. 
This mode of publication (public recitation] . . . was 
among the arts ministerial to sensual enjoyment. 
De Quincey, Style, iv. 
2. Of or pertaining to a minister or ministry 3. A religious service or other function, 
of state; belonging to executive as distinguish- The solemn and "plendld minith-aKont^ot the 
ed from legislative or judicial office : as, min- 
isterial functions. 
Very solid and very brilliant talents distinguished the 
ministerial benches. Burke, Appeal to Old Whigs. 
church 
"35 3XW 5 -$ S Inl 
gleaming of armor, and the waving of innumerable ban- 
ners. C. E.Narton, Church-building in Middle Ages.p.100. 
Through the power of th 
cil to attend and speak In 
bly can therefore hear . . 
ministerial statement. 
E. A. Freeman, Amer. Lects., p. 391. 
(min'ig-tra-tiv), a. [= It. minis- 
. ^ratiro ; as ministration) + -i.e.] Affording 
what in England we call a service or aid ; assisting. r rt _, .. 
ministratort (mm'is-tra-tor), n. [= OF. mmts- 
truteur = Pg. ministrador, < L. ministrator, an 
3. Pertaining to the office, character, or habits attendant, servant. < ministrare, attend, serve: 
of a clergyman; clerical: as, ministerial gar- see minister, i:] An administrator. 
clergyman 
ments. 
It Is the inward calling of God that makes a Minister, 
and hi 
and iti 
The law and the minirlraton of it. 
Roger North, Examen, p. 74. (Danet.) 
."own painfull study and diligence that manures rninistratoriOUSlyt (min'is-tra-t6'ri-U8-li),arfl\ 
iproves his >i>MeriaU gifts Remonst C< "ministratorioiis L. ministratorius, of or 
'""' Ol! pertaining to service, < ministrator, servant : see 
ministrtitor) + -ty 2 .] In the capacity of an ad- 
ministrator. [Rare.] 
A man can but onely ministratoriowty glue any tempo- 
rail dominion or gift perpetual, as well tohis own natural 
sonnc, as to his sonne by imitation. 
State Trials, 8 Rich. II. , an. 1383 (John Wyclitfe). 
Ministerial acts, offices, powers, in law, those acts, of- 
rtcen, or powers that are to be performed or exercised uni- 
formly on a given state of facts, in a prescribed manner, 
in obedience to law or the mandate of legal authority, 
without dependence on the exercise of Judgment as to the 
propriety of so doing. Thus, the duties of a sheriff or 
clerk of court are chiefly if not entirely ministerial. Min- 
isterial benches. See bench. = Syn. 3. Ecclesiastical. 
ministerialist ('min-is-te'ri-al-istj, . [< minixte- ministress (min'is-tres), n. [< OF. ministresse, < 
ritil + -int.'] In politics, a supporter of the mm- L. ministrix, equiv. to ministra, a servant, fern. 
istrv in office. of minister: see minister.'} \. A female mims- 
istry 
The Ministerialists have not been able to maintain In the 
counties the advantage they had gained in the boroughs. 
Edinburgh Ret., CLXIII. 281. 
ministerially (min-is-te'ri-al-i), adv. In a min- 
isterial manner, character, or capacity. 
The Son . . . submits to act ministerially, or in capa- 
city of Mediator. 
ministering (min'is-ter-ing), p. a. Attending 
and serving as a subordinate agent 
under superior authority; performing persona 
services; tending. 
Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minis- 
ter for them who shall be heirs of salvation ? Heb. i. 14. 
When pain and anguish wring the brow, 
A mimxttrimj angel thou ! Scott, Marmion, vl. SO. 
ministerium (min-is-te'ri-um), ii. [< L. ministe- 
rium, ministry: see ministry.] 1. In the Lutlu -r- 
an Church, a body of ordained ministers hav- 
ing the sole charge of examining, licensing. 
and ordaining candidates for the ministry, of 
conducting trials for clerical heresy, and of 
hearing all appeals from church councils for 
lay heresy. The word is also sometimes used in amiire 
general sense, as synonymous with v/i"<(. whii-h includes 
both ministers and lay delegates in one body. In such 
cases, however, the niinisterium proper consists of the 
ordained ministers only. 
ter, in any sense 
Thus was beauty sent from Heaven, 
The lovely ministreu of truth and good. 
Akenside, Pleasures of Imagination, I. 
2t. A mistress. 
The olde foxes cniell and severe myiMreste 
Will learne the entereNiever to come forth. 
Bcnoenuto, Passengers' Dialogues, (\arei.) 
mf- b serving ministry (min'is-tri), ,..; pi. ministries (-triz). 
in* .>erso [Formerly also minittery ; = F. ministers = Sp. 
Pg. It. ministerw, < L. ministerium, the office 
or function of an attendant or servant, atten- 
dance, service, office, occupation, employment, 
a suite of attendants, etc., < minister, an at- 
tendant, servant, minister : see minister, n. Cf . 
ministerium, and mister*, mystery'*, u lt.< L. mtoi*- 
lf>-ii(m.] 1. The act of ministering; the ren- 
dering of service ; ministration. 
It was a worthy edifying sight . . . 
To see kind hands attending day and night, 
With tender nrinufry, from place to place. 
Thomson, Castle of Indolence, II. 75. 
2. The state of ministering or serving; agency; 
instrumentality. 
The natural world he made after a miraculous manner; 
but directs the alfalrsof it ever since by ... the ordinary 
ministry of second causes, Bp. Attemtry. 
Every one that came to do the serrice of the 
... In the tabernacle of the congregation. Num. Iv. 47. 
Do you think In your heart that you are truly called 
... to the Order and Jfuiutry of Priesthood? 
Boot </ Common Prayer, Ordering of Priert*. 
Their ministry perform'd, and race well run, . . . 
They die. Milton, V. L. , xli. 506. 
4. The general or a particular body of minis- 
ters of religion ; the ministerial or clerical class; 
the clergy or priesthood. In episcopal churches the 
ministry consists of bishops, priests, and deacons, and of 
subdeacons and the minor orders, when such exist, In ad- 
dition to these. 
5. The body of ministers of state in a conn- 
try ; the heads of departments collectively; the 
executive administration: as, to form a minis- 
try; the policy of the British ministry; the 
French ministry has resigned. In the United 
States the corresponding body is called the 
cabinet. 
The word Ministry was not then in nee, bnt Counsel- 
lor* or Courtier*. For the King himself [Chsrles II.I 
then took so much upon him that the ministers had not 
that aggregate title. Roger North, Examen, p. 0. (Dames.) 
The first English ministry was gradually formed ; nor 
Is It possible to say quite precisely when it began to exist. 
Macaulay, Hist. Eng., xxiv. 
6. A ministerial department of government; 
the organization of functionaries administering 
a branch of public affairs; a minister and his 
subordinates collectively: as, the ministry of 
war or of justice. 
Immediately below these three Institutions stand the 
ministries, ten in number. D. M. Wallace, Russia, p. 188. 
ininistryship (min'is-tri-ship), n. [< ministry 
+ -ship.] The office of a minister; ministry. 
Swift. [Rare.] 
minium (min'i-um), 11. [Formerly also minion, 
< OF. minion, F. minium = Sp. Pg. It. wmii'o; < 
L. minium, native cinnabar, red lead : said to 
be a Spanish ( Hispanic) word. Hence miniate. 
miniature.] Bed oxid of lead, Pb 3 O 4 , produced 
by maintaining the protoxid (litharge) at a low- 
red heat for some time in presence of air. It 
is a bright-orange granular powder, used as a 
pigment and in the manufacture of flint-glass. 
See vermilion. Iron minium, a name given to a large 
number of substances used as paints, espi-cially for Iron- 
work and sea-going vessels Oxidized minium, a dried 
composition consisting of lead nitrate, lead peroxid, and 
undecomposed minium, obtained by drying a magma of 
minium and nitric acid. 
miniver (min'i-ver), M. [Formerly also mtn- 
ecer, ieiiti-cr,dial. miiiifer; < ME. meiiirer, meny- 
ver, < OF. weiiw rer, menu rn>, WICMM tair, a gray- 
ish fur, miniver, also " the beast that bears it" 
(Cotgrave), lit. little vair: wcu, little; tair, a 
kindoffur: see minute* and tair.] 1. A mixed 
or spotted fur once commonly used for lining or 
trimming garments. According to Cotgrave, It was 
"the fur of ermlns mixed or spotted with the fur of the 
weesel called gris"; but according to 1'lanche, miniver 
was the white part only of the patchwork designs of dif- 
ferent furs In use at certain epochs during the middle ages. 
as Is seen in the heraldic furs, which retain the designs 
most commonly used at that time. 
A burnet cote heng therwith nil.-, 
Furred with no menyrere. 
Rom. of tlte Rote, L 227. 
Me lists not tell of ouches rare, 
Of marbles green, and braided hair, 
And klrtles furred with miniwr. 
Scott, L.otL. M., Tt 4. 
2. In her., a fur like vair, with the peculiarity 
that the escutcheon-miniver contains six or 
more horizontal rows of spots. 3. The Sibe- 
rian squirrel, which has fine white fur; also, the 
fur itself. 
minivet (min'i-vet), w. One of various cam- 
pophagine birds of the genus Pericrocotus. 
mink (mingk), H. [Formerly also minx (appar. 
an error); appar. < Sw. manic, a mink (Putorius 
lutreola), transferred from the European mink 
to the American species.] 1. An American 
digitigrade carnivorous quadruped of the fam- 
ily Mustelidce, Putorius (Lutreola) rison, of semi- 
aquatic habits. The mink belongs to the same genus 
aa the stoats and weasels, but to a different snbgenus, its 
form being modified in adaptation to Ha aqnalic habita, 
in which respect It approaches the otters. It was once 
called letter otter. It Is larger and stouter than any rtoat^ 
with shorter earn, uniformly bushy tall, MM half-webbed 
feet; the color is rich dark chestnut-brown, blackening 
