laity

noun — 3 senses

laity

noun

US, UK /ˈleɪ.ə.ti/

Etymology From Anglo-Norman laite, from Latin laitas, from Ancient Greek λαός (laós, “people”).

1

People of a church who are not ordained clergy or clerics.

2

The common man or woman.

3

The unlearned, untrained or ignorant.

Synonyms
congregation, flock, fold, laity
Antonyms
clergy
Related terms
lay, layman
Hypernyms
assembly, community
Meronyms
layperson

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.