parish

parish — noun

1. a district under the spiritual care of one priest or minister, served by a singl

1.名詞C1
釋義

a district under the spiritual care of one priest or minister, served by a single local church building where nearby residents come to worship.

例句

Father Daniel has looked after this small rural parish for nearly twenty years.

subject is usually a priest + 'looks after / serves the parish'

The parish of St. Mark covers three villages along the river valley.

the parish of [saint name / place]

同義詞
  • diocese

    much larger area, led by a bishop, contains many parishes

  • congregation

    the worshippers themselves, not the area they live in

文法句型

the parish of [place]

用法筆記

Subject is typically a priest, pastor, or bishop; the parish is what they 'serve', 'lead', or 'are assigned to'. Distinguish from sense 2 (civil unit of local government) and sense 3 (the people themselves).

常見錯誤

❌I live in the Catholic parish religion.
✅I belong to the local Catholic parish.
💡a parish is an area or community, not the religion itself.
❌The parish has 500 square kilometres of priests.
✅The parish covers about 500 square kilometres.
💡use 'cover' for the area a parish takes in.

2. in England, the smallest official area used for local government, run by an elec

2.名詞C2
釋義

in England, the smallest official area used for local government, run by an elected council and usually matching the boundaries of an old church parish.

例句

Voters in Ashbourne Parish elected three new councillors last Thursday.

[Place name] Parish as a civil unit

Our parish council meets at the village hall on the first Monday of every month.

collocation: parish council, parish meeting

同義詞
  • village

    more general; a parish may include several villages or none

  • borough

    larger urban unit; a parish is usually rural or semi-rural

文法句型

[name] Parish

用法筆記

Almost always English (and to a lesser extent Welsh) civil-government usage; capitalised when part of a place name (Ashbourne Parish). Watch for the Louisiana sense in American English where 'parish' replaces 'county' — that regional use is not covered by this entry.

常見錯誤

❌The parish elected a new mayor of the city.
✅The parish elected a new chair of its council.
💡civil parishes have councils and chairs, not mayors of cities.
❌I pay my parish taxes to the priest.
✅I pay my parish council precept to the local authority.
💡civil parish money goes to the council, not the church.

3. the group of people who belong to a particular church and who often live near it

3.名詞C1
釋義

the group of people who belong to a particular church and who often live near it, treated together as one community.

例句

The whole parish came out to celebrate Father Owen's fortieth year as a priest.

'the whole / entire parish' meaning all the people

Our parish raised over four thousand pounds to repair the church roof.

parish as collective subject of an action

同義詞
  • congregation

    narrower: only those who actually attend services

  • flock

    warm/pastoral; mainly used by clergy about their own people

文法句型

the whole / entire parish

用法筆記

Treated as a singular collective: 'the parish was', 'the parish welcomes'. Distinguish from sense 1 by asking whether the writer means the place (sense 1) or the people in it (this sense). 'A member of the parish' or 'the whole parish' nearly always points here.

常見錯誤

❌The parish are very big in size.
✅The parish is very large in number.
💡when 'parish' refers to people, talk about numbers, not square miles.
❌I am a parish of St. Anne's.
✅I am a member of the parish at St. Anne's.
💡a person is not a parish; they belong to one.