priest 
Ami the pried shall make an atonement fur them, and 
it ihall be forgiven tin m. l.i-v. Iv. 20. 
On a sekte of the lame Chariot, a little more eleoate, 
ate EumHiiia, the Virgin.' Print of the Coddesse Honor. 
Chapman, Masqireof the Middle Temple nml Lincoln slnn. 
Pnijrere which In this golden censer, mlx'd 
With Incense, I thy priest before thee bring. 
MUlun, P. L, xi. 2ft. 
To what green altar, O mysterious print, 
Uadst thou that heifer lowing at the skies? 
Km!*, Grecian Urn. 
2. One who is ordained to the pastoral or sacer- 
dotal office; a presbyter; an elder, in Wycllf 
the word priest Is used where In Tyndale and the author- 
lied version the word rider Is used ; for example, " For this 
cause left I thee in Crete, that thon shouldest reforme the 
things that are wanting, and shouldest ordaine prirgte* 
I presbyters, p<rpur<po ; authorized version elders} by 
cities as I also appointed thee" (Titos i. 5). 
3. Specifically, in hierarchical churches, the 
second in rank in the clerical orders, between 
bishop and deacon. Etymologically, the word priest 
Is a derivative or modification of the word presbyter. As, 
however, the office of the presbyterate has been regarded 
In the Christian church from primitive or early times as 
a sacerdotal office In so far as It confers power to celebrate 
the eucharlat and to confer absolution, and as no chnrch 
officer below a presbyter can exercise these functions, and 
all above a presbyter continue to exercise them in virtue 
of their ordination as presby ten, the title of presbyter and 
that of tacerdot or i^i> (sacrificing priest) soon came to 
be regarded as synonymous, and either one or the other 
of these titles to be preferred In popular use in different 
languages, to the exclusion of its synonym. The title of 
priest (icpiff, gacer(tog) was in the early church given by 
preeminence to the bishop (specifically the hi>ih priext) as 
ordinary celebrant of the encharist In cities and the foun- 
tain of sacerdotal authority. The Roman Catholic Church 
teaches that it is the office of a priest "to offer, bless, rule, 
preach, anil baptize." These same offices are assigned to 
priests In the Orthodox Greek and other Oriental churches 
and In the Anglican Church. In the church last named 
the form of ordination gives authority to forgive or retain 
sins and be a dispenser of the word and sacraments, and 
only priests (Including bishops as In priest's orders) can 
give benediction, pronounce absolution, and consecrate 
the euchariit. 
And xxvlj Day of August, Decessyd Syr Thomas Toppe, 
a /'/'/ of the west countre. 
Torkington, Diarie of Eng, Travell, p. 56. 
It Is evident unto all men, diligently reading Holy 
Scripture and ancient Authors, that from the Apostles' 
time there have been these orders of Ministers in Christ's 
Church Bishops, 1'rlests, and Deacons. 
Boot of Common Prayr, Preface to the Ordinal. 
4. A breed of domestic pigeons, in four differ- 
ent color-varieties, black, blue, red, and yellow. 
5. A mark composed of two concentric cir- 
cles, used as a private stamp, a brand for cat- 
tle, and the like in England Cardinal priest 
See cardinal, ., 1. Chantry priest, a priest employed 
to say mass In a chantry for the soul of the founder or 
other person, or for some specified intention. See chantry. 
-Hlgn priest, a chief priest, .specifically (a) The chief 
ecclesiastical omcer In the ancient Jewish church. He ex- 
ercised certain judicial and quasi-political functions, as 
well as functions of a purely sacerdotal character ; but his 
power varied at different periods of Jewish history. He 
alone entered the Holy of Holies in the temple; he was 
the arbiter in all religious matters, and to him lay the final 
appeal In all controversies. In later times he was the head 
of the Sanhedrim, and next In rank to the sovereign. 
The priests went always Into the first tabernacle. . . . 
But Into the second went the hiyh priest alone once every 
year. Heb. ix. 7. 
(6) la the rarln Christian church, a bishop, (c) A mem- 
ber of an order In the Mormon Church ranking among the 
higher orders. See Mormon'-. - Massing priest'. See 
tiuwii . _ Parish, penitentiary, etc. , priest. See the ad- 
jectives. Penitential priest. Same as penitentiary, 1 
and _'. Poor Priests, an order of Itinerant preaching 
clergy, founded by John Wycllf. They preached In dlf- 
I'M ni parts of England, in most places without ecclesias- 
tical authority. They wore blue or russet gowns, went 
harefiMit, and were dependent on the hospitality of their 
hearen for food and lodging. According to some author- 
ities, laymen also were admitted among these preachers. 
The order was suppressed In 1881 or 1382. not long after 
its foundation, it had, however, succeeded In dissemi- 
nating Wyclltnte teachings widely throughout England. 
Also Poor Preachers, Simple Priests. Priest's bonnet, 
In/ort. Hee bonnet <\ prttn, under bonnet. Seminary 
pnect See MMi'iuri/. -- The priest, the celebrant of the 
eucharlst, especially as distinguished from his assistants 
(deacon, subdeacou, etc.). = Bya. Clergyman, etc. See 
minister. 
priest ( | irost), r. [< priest, n.] I. trans. To or- 
dain to the priesthood; make a priest of. 
II. intrans. To hold the office or exercise the 
functions of a priest. [Rare.] 
Honour God, and the bishop as high-priest, bearing the 
Image of flod according tohls ruling, and <>f Christ accord- 
ing to lilt prietting. Milton, Prelatlcal Episcopacy. 
priest-cap (prest'kap), n. In fort., an out- 
work with two salient and three reSntering 
angles. 
Paine attacked with great vigor at what proved to be 
the strongest point of the whole work, the print-cap near 
the Jackson road. 
H. B. Inrin, In Battle* and Leaders of the Civil War, 
(III. 696. 
priestcraft ( prest'kraft), n. [< priest + craft.] 
I'm "<ily policy or system of management based 
4722 
on temporal or material interest : the arts prac- 
tised by selfish and ambitious priests to gain 
wealth and power, or to impose on the credu- 
lity of others. 
From priestcraft happily set free, 
I/o ! every finish 'd son returns to thee. 
Pope, Dunciad, Iv. 499. 
Specimens of the priestcraft by which the greater part 
of Christendom had been fooled. 
Macaulay, Hist, Eng., vl. 
priestcrafty (prest'kraf'ti), a. [< priestcraft 
+ -u 1 .] Relating to or characterized by priest- 
craft. Worcester. [Bare.] 
priesteryt (pres'ter-i), n. [< priest + -fry.] 
Priests collectively; the pnesthood: in con- 
tempt. Milton. 
priestess (pres'tes), . [< priest + -ess.] 1. 
A woman who officiates in sacred rites. 
She, as priestess, knows the rites 
Wherein the God of earth delights. 
f<u'<.r I, Stella's Birthday, 1722. 
2f. The wife or concubine of apriest. 
priest-fish (prest'fish), . [Tr. F. peche-pretre.] 
The black rockflsh of California, Sebastichthys 
mystintts or melanops. It Is of a slaty-black color, 
paler below, and attains a length of a foot or more. It is 
the most abundant scorprenoid nsh about San Francisco, 
and is found from Puget .Sound to San Diego. 
priesthood (prest'hud), n. [< ME. preetttliwxl, 
prrsthod, < AS. preostltdd, < preoxt, priest, + 
lidrl, condition: see priest and -hood.] 1. The 
office or character of a priest. 
Chaplain, away ! thy priesthood saves thy life. 
SAa/r.,3Hen. VI., i. S. S. 
2. The order of men set apart for sacred offices ; 
priests collectively, 
priest-ill (prest'il), H. The ague. Hallitrell. 
[Prov. Eng.] 
priestlike(prest'Kk), a. [< print + likr.] Re- 
sembling a priest, or that which belongs to 
priests; sacerdotal. 
A iiriestlilte habit of crimson and purple. 
B. Jonson, Masque of Beauty. 
The moving waters at their priestlike task 
Of pure ablution round earth's human shores. 
Keats, Last Sonnet. 
priestliness (prest'li-nes). M. The quality of 
being priestly; the appearance and manner of 
a priest. 
priestly (prest'li), a. [<ME. prcstlij( = D.priext- 
erlijk = MLG. prcsterlik, prestlik = OHG. pres- 
tarlili, MHG. priestrrlick, G. priesterlirh = Icel. 
prestligr = Sw. presterlifj = Dan. prasttlig ; < 
priest + -ly 1 .] 1. Of or pertaining to a priest 
or priests; sacerdotal: as, the priestly office. 
The priestly brotherhood, devout, sincere. 
Cmrprr, Expostulation, 1. 488. 
With . . . that flue piece of priestly needle-work she 
looked like some pious lay-member of a sisterhood. 
//. James, Jr., Pass. Pilgrim, p. 297. 
2. Befitting a priest : as, priestly sobriety and 
purity of life. 
Hie thee, whiles I say 
A prierila farewell to her. 
Alt., Pericles, III. 1. 70. 
priest-monk (prest'mungk), . In the early 
church and in the Greek Church, a monk who is 
a priest ; a hieromonach. 
priestrid (prest'rid), a. Same as prirstridden. 
Rome not the toothless beldame of modern days, but 
the avenging divinity of priett-rid monarch*. 
Motley, Hist Netherlands, II. 841. 
priestridden (prest'rid'n), a. [< priest + rid- 
di ii.] Managed or governed by priests; en- 
tirely swayed by priests. 
That pusillanimity and man leu subjugation which by 
many In our age scornfully is called prirstrirHriuiea, as I 
may so say : their term being priettridden when they ex- 
press a man addicted to the clergy. 
Watrrhm*, Apol. for U-nnilng (1658X p. 82. (Latham.) 
priestriddenness (pifst'rid'n-neg), n. The 
state of being prii'stridden. See the quotation 
nmler prii-^/rnldi n. [Rare.] 
priest's-crown (pn-sts'kroiin), . The common 
dandelion : *<> railed from its bald receptacle 
after the achenia are blown away, with allusion 
to the priestly tonsure. [Prov. Eng.] 
prighte 
Pmtes crowne that flyeth about In somer, barhedien. 
Palsgrave. (HaltimU ) 
prievet (prev), r. An obsolete form of prim . 
prig 1 (prig), r. ; pret. and pp. prigged. pj>r. prig- 
ging. [Origin obscure. Cf . Ot . briguer, steal 
purses on the highway, also solicit, canvas, in- 
trigue, quarrel : see brigue, brigand.] I. trans. 
1. To filch or steal. [Slang.] 
Hlggen hath prigg'd the prancers In his days, 
And sold good penny-worths. 
Fletcher, Beggar's Bush, T. 2. 
They can't find the ring ! 
And the Abbot declared that, " when nobody twlgg'd It, 
Some rascal or other had popp'd in and prigg'd it ! " 
Barnam, Ingolusby Legends, I. 211. 
2. To cheapen; haggle about. [North. Eug. 
and Scotch.] 
II. intranti. To plead hard; haggle. [Scotch.] 
Hen wha grew wise priggin' owre hops an' raisins. 
Burns, Brigs of Ayr. 
prlgl (prig), H. [Ct.prigl,v.] A thief. [Slang.] 
Out upon him ! prig, for my life, prig ; he haunts wakes, 
fairs, and bear-baitings. Shak., W. T., iv. 8. 106. 
All sorts of villains, knaves, prigs, etc., are essential 
parts of the equipage of life. /). Quiiuxy. 
prig 2 (prig), " [Origin unknown; perhaps a 
later application otjirigi in the general sense, 
among ''the profession," of 'a smart fellow.'] 
1. A conceited, narrow-minded, pragmatical 
person ; a dull, precise person. 
Though swoln with vanity and pride, 
You're but one driv'ler multiplied, 
A prig that proves himself by starts 
As many dolta as there are arts. 
.',11,1,1. Fables, I. 
One of those conceited prigs who value nature only as 
it feeds and exhibits them. Kmerson, Clubs. 
A prig Is a fellow who Is always making you a present 
of his opinions. Oeorge Eliot, Middleman*!), xl. 
2. A coxcomb; a dandy. [Now prov. Eng.] 
A cane Is part of the dress of a prig, and always worn 
upon a button, for fear he should be thought to nave an 
occasion for It. Steele, Tatler, No. 77. 
prig 3 (prig), r. t.; pret. and pp. prigged, ppr. 
pngging. [Cf. prick in like sense.] To dress 
up; adorn; prink. Compare prick, 9. 
He's no more use than yer prigged up creepers I vines]. 
S. .in, Id, Margaret, i. 4. 
(prig), r. t. and i.; pret. and pp. prigged, 
ppr. prigging. [Cf. prick in like sense.] To 
ride. Deleter, Lanthorue and Caudle-light, sig. 
Cii. (Hallivell.) [Old cant.] 
prig 5 (prig), . [Origin obscure. Cf. pig 2 .] 
1. A small pitcher. Htilliwrll. [Prov. Eng.] 
2. A small brass skillet. Halliircll. [Prov. 
Eng.] 
prigger (prig'er), . A thief. [Slang.] 
He Is commonly a stealer of Horses, which they terme 
a Priggar of I'aulfreys. Fraternity <if Vagabonds (1S61). 
priggery 1 (prig'er-i), w. [< prig* + -fry.] 
Thieving. [Slang.] 
He said he was sorry to see any of his gang guilty of a 
breach of honour; that without honour priggery was at 
an end. Fielding, Jonathan wild, lit 6. 
priggery 2 (prig'er-i), H. [< prig'* + -ery.] The 
qualities of a prig; conceit; priggism. 
priggish 1 (prig'ish). n. [< prigl + -i**i.] Dis- 
honest; thievish. [Slang.] 
Every prig is a slave. His own priggish desires . . . 
betray him to the tyranny of others. 
Fielding, Jonathan Wild, Ir. X 
priggish 2 (prig'ish), a. [< prig* + -w/il.] Con- 
ceited; coxcombical; affected. 
Trim sounds so very short and prigyish that my Name 
ahonld be a Monosyllable ! Stede, (Jrief A-la-Mode, Iv. 1. 
All but the very ignorant or the very priggish admit that 
the folk-lore of the people can teach us several things 
that are not to be learned In any other manner. 
A", and Q., 7th ser., II. 488. 
priggishly (prig'ish-li), adr. In a priggish man- 
ner; conceitedly; pertly. 
priggishness (pVigMsh-nes), n. The state or 
character of being priggish. 
There Is a deficiency, a littleness, * priggishneu, a sort of 
vulgarity, observable about even the highest type of moral 
goodness attainable without it (a reverential spirit I. 
//. .V. Oxenham, Short Studies, p. ISO. 
priggism 1 (prig'izm), . [<j*rtyl +-ism.] The 
condition, habits, or actions of a prig or thief; 
roguery. [Slang.] 
How unhappy Is the state of priggitm '. how Impossible 
for human prudence to foresee and guard against every 
circumvention ! Fi-ldimj. Jonathan \\ ild II. 4. 
priggism- (prig'izm i. . ( < /<i /;/'-' + -I'XIM.] The 
rs of a prig. 
Your great Mechanics' Institutes end In Intellectual 
priggism. T. Hughes, Tom Brown at Rugby, I. 2. 
prightet. An obsolete preterit of prick. I'litnt- 
