precentor
/prɪˈsɛn.tə(ɹ)/ noun
Forms precentors præcentor precentour
- noun The person who leads songs or prayers in a cathedral, church, monastery, or synagogue and generally facilitates worship.
Synonyms
Etymology
From French précenteur, from Latin praecentor, from praecentus (“sung before”), from praecinō (“to sing before”) + -or (“agent suffix”), from prae- + canĕre (“to sing”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun A leader of a choir; a directing singer. Specifically: (a) The leader of the choir in a cathedral; --called also the chanter or master of the choir. Hook.
Etymology [L. praecentor, fr. praecinere to sing before; prae before + canere to sing. See Chant.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “precentor”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details