vestment

[ vest-muhnt ]

noun

1. a garment, especially an outer garment.
2. vestments, Chiefly Literary. attire; clothing.
3. an official or ceremonial robe.
4. Ecclesiastical.
   1. one of the garments worn by the clergy and their assistants, choristers, etc., during divine service and on other occasions.
   2. one of the garments worn by the celebrant, deacon, and subdeacon during the celebration of the Eucharist.
5. something that clothes or covers like a garment:

   a mountaintop with a vestment of clouds.

vestment

/ ˈvɛstmənt; vɛstˈmɛntəl /

noun

1. a garment or robe, esp one denoting office, authority, or rank
2. any of various ceremonial garments worn by the clergy at religious services

Derived Forms

• vestmental, adjective

Other Words From

• vest·men·tal [vest-, men, -tl], adjective
• vestment·ed adjective
• sub·vestment noun
• super·vestment noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of vestment¹

1250–1300; syncopated variant of Middle English vestiment < Medieval Latin vestīmentum priestly robe, Latin: garment, equivalent to vestī ( re ) to dress ( vest ) + -mentum -ment

Word History and Origins

Origin of vestment¹

C13: from Old French vestiment, from Latin vestīmentum clothing, from vestīre to clothe

Example Sentences

A short text describing his pontificate was sealed inside a metal cylinder and placed with his body along with episcopal palliums, the a white wool vestment worn around the neck that symbolizes a bishop’s ecclesiastical jurisdiction.

From New York Times

The parish priest, the Rev. Tadeusz Rozmus, donned a white vestment that Benedict had worn during a Mass he celebrated for the Castel Gandolfo faithful in their church and then left behind as a gift.

From Seattle Times

The Vatican’s news site noted that Benedict was lying in state without a pallium, a vestment that would not be used for a “retired prelate.”

From Washington Post

He was clad in a miter, red vestments and simple black shoes, but not the silver staff with crucifix or pallium, the vestment symbolizing papal authority.

From New York Times

He did not have a pallium, the vestment symbolizing the authority of archdiocesan bishops because it was “a symbol of jurisdiction which is normally not used for a retired prelate,” according to the Vatican website Vatican News.

From New York Times

Related Words

• frock
• garb
• robe
• stole
• tunic