Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A cleric in charge of a parish in the Episcopal Church.
  • noun An Anglican parish priest in a parish where historically the priest was entitled to the tithes.
  • noun A Roman Catholic priest appointed to be managerial as well as spiritual head of a church or other institution, such as a seminary or university.
  • noun The principal of certain schools, colleges, and universities.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A ruler or governor.
  • noun In the Ch. of Eng., a clergyman who has the charge of a parish and full possession of all the rights and privileges attached thereto.
  • noun In the United States, a clergyman in charge of a parish in the Protestant Episcopal Church.
  • noun In the Roman Catholic Church, an ecclesiastic in charge of a congregation, a college, or a religious house; specifically, the superior of a Jesuit seminary or college.
  • noun The chief elective officer of some universities, as in France and Scotland.
  • noun The presiding officer or chairman of certain gilds and associations.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun rare A ruler or governor.
  • noun (Ch. of Eng.) A clergyman who has the charge and cure of a parish, and has the tithes, etc.; the clergyman of a parish where the tithes are not impropriate. See the Note under Vicar.
  • noun (Prot. Epis. Ch.) A clergyman in charge of a parish.
  • noun Scot. The head master of a public school.
  • noun The chief elective officer of some universities, as in France and Scotland; sometimes, the head of a college.
  • noun (R. C. Ch.) The superior officer or chief of a convent or religious house; and among the Jesuits the superior of a house that is a seminary or college.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun In the Anglican Church, a cleric in charge of a parish and who owns the tithes of it.
  • noun In the Roman Catholic Church, a cleric with managerial as well as spiritual responsibility for a church or other institution.
  • noun A headmaster in various educational institutions, e.g. a university.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a person authorized to conduct religious worship

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin rēctor, director, from , rēctus past participle of regere, to rule; see reg- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin, itself from rectus, past participle of regere 'to direct'

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Examples

  • The term rector is applied likewise to the heads of universities, seminaries, and colleges; to the local superiors of religious houses of men; to the pope, as rector of the world, in the conferring of the tiara.

    The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 12: Philip II-Reuss 1840-1916 1913

  • To a rector who has resigned is often given the title rector emeritus.

    The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 12: Philip II-Reuss 1840-1916 1913

  • I find something satisfyingly timeless about it, with sunlight on the Georgian orange brick, the feeling that perhaps the rector is within, preparing his sermon to be preached in the equally satisfying Perpendicular church at the back.

    The Langton Messiah Peter Ashley 2008

  • Anyhow, I called the rector and I heard Beatles music in the background ... he must be a good fellow.

    trinityboy Diary Entry trinityboy 2005

  • The same groups, olivadentes -- the same as they call the rector of the university -- because it includes economists, agricultural engineers, civil engineers, hydraulic engineers, electrical engineers, chemical engineers, biologists, and a lot more, will move from Havana toward the south Matanzas zone.

    12TH ANNIVERSARY OF ATTACK ON PRESIDENTIAL PALAC 1969

  • She called the rector a Papist; hinted that the doctor's wife was no better than she should be; announced that Morley owed money to his tradesmen, that he had squandered his wife's fortune; and finally wound up by saying that he would spend Daisy Kent's money when he got it.

    A Coin of Edward VII A Detective Story Fergus Hume 1895

  • After serving as rector of this church for 40 years, he retired in 1990 receiving the designation rector emeritus.

    chron.com Chronicle 2009

  • The rector is a legendary schoolmaster, but a complex one.

    Visions From a Vanishing World 2010

  • The rector is a lesbian, the church hosts BAGLY meetings, gays make up a large portion of the congregation, and our company has been greeted with open arms.

    DesignerBlog Will 2008

  • The rector is a lesbian, the church hosts BAGLY meetings, gays make up a large portion of the congregation, and our company has been greeted with open arms.

    Archive 2008-01-01 Will 2008

Comments

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  • This word has a whiff of wrongness.

    December 17, 2008

  • I'd say it has a whiff of more than that.

    December 17, 2008