Dictionary
Find
in
Dictionary
Thesaurus
Translations

Click to move up the list of words
vibrio
vibriosis
vibrissa
vibronic
vibrotron
viburnum
Vic.
vic.
vicar
vicar apostolic
vicar general
Vicar of Christ
vicarage
vicarate
vicarial
vicariate
vicarious
Click to move down the list of words
Print Preview
See pronunciation key
Search for "vicar" in all of MSN Encarta
E-mail this entry
Blog about this entry on MSN Spaces
Download the MSN Encarta Right-Click Dictionary

vicar

vic·ar [ víkər ] (plural vic·ars)


noun 
Definition:
 
1. U.S. Episcopal Church cleric: a cleric in the Episcopal Church who is in charge of a chapel

2. Anglican priest: a priest in the Church of England who is in charge of a parish. Vicars, unlike rectors, were not formerly entitled to receive the tithes, which went to a religious house, chapter, or lay person, and were paid a stipend.

3. member of Anglican clergy: a member of the Anglican clergy who acts in place of a rector or bishop at Communion

4. Roman Catholic priest: a Roman Catholic priest who represents or deputizes for a bishop

[14th century. Via Anglo-Norman vicare< Latin vicarius "substitute" < vic- "change, place"; because the vicar acted as a substitute for the rector]

vic·ar·ly adjective
vic·ar·ship noun
Englishtown: Learn English online
Encarta Message Boards (© Rubberball/Jupiterimages)
Upgrade your Encarta experience
Encarta RSS Feeds
© 2008 Microsoft