abbot

Meaning

1. The superior or head of an abbey or monastery.
2. The pastor or administrator of an order, including minor and major orders starting with the minor order of porter.
3. A layman who received the abbey's revenues, after the closing of the monasteries.
4. (British, archaic, slang) A brothel-owner's husband or lover.
5. (British, archaic, slang) A ponce; a man employed by a prostitute to find clients, and who may also act as a bodyguard or equivalent to a bouncer.

Synonyms

archimandrite

priest

prior

abbé

clergyman

cleric

churchman

minister

prelate

superior

head of a convent

father superior

abbess

ascetic

friar

hermit

mother superior

prioress

Catholic priest

chief monk

monastery head

Translations

abad

Abt

abbé

abate

abade

abat

abt

abbas

ηγούμενος

αββάς

Abbate

kloosteroverste

abbé

Pfarrer

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈæb.ət/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: abbot

Inherited from Old English: abbat

In summary

From Middle English abbot, abbod, abbed, from Old English abbat, abbad, abbod, from Latin abbās (“father”), from Ancient Greek ἀββᾶς (abbâs), from Aramaic אבא (’abbā, “father”). Doublet of abba, abbé, and bwana.