seminary

noun

sem·​i·​nary ˈse-mə-ˌner-ē 

plural seminaries

1

: an environment in which something originates and from which it is propagated

a seminary of vice and crime

2

a

: an institution of secondary or higher education

b

: an institution for the training of candidates for the priesthood, ministry, or rabbinate

Synonyms

• academe
• academy
• school

Examples of seminary in a Sentence

a seminary exclusively for women

some claimed that orphanages were seminaries of sin and petty crime, turning out juvenile delinquents by the score

Recent Examples on the Web

More International News Image In a deal with Islamist parties, Pakistan is abandoning a requirement that religious seminaries — which Western officials see as a threat — register with the government. —Ian Prasad Philbrick, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2025

Southwestern trustees fired former president Paige Patterson in 2018 amid reports that Patterson downplayed reports of rape and sought to intimidate an abuse victim during his tenure at Southwestern and another SBC seminary. —Liam Adams, The Tennessean, 21 Oct. 2024

Photo: Google Maps Like many condos, this one comes with lots of amenities and perks not found in co-ops, including a swimming pool in the seminary’s former refectory and a reading room with a great books collection. —Kim Velsey, Curbed, 21 Nov. 2024

Previously, Germany had seminaries dedicated to ordaining rabbis, but no place for academic study of Jewish history and culture. —Shira Li Bartov, Sun Sentinel, 3 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, seedbed, nursery, from Latin seminarium, from semin-, semen seed

First Known Use

1542, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing seminary

• major seminary
• minor seminary

Kids Definition

seminary

noun

sem·​i·​nary ˈsem-ə-ˌner-ē 

plural seminaries

1

: a private school at or above the high school level

2

: a school for the training of priests, ministers, or rabbis

Etymology

Middle English seminary "seedbed, nursery, from Latin seminarium (same meaning), from semen "seed"

Word Origin

The English word seminary and its Latin source seminarium, a derivative of semen, "seed," both originally denoted a nursery for young plants. Roman authors sometimes used the Latin word figuratively, but English has gone much further in extending the meaning of the word, while the old sense "nursery for plants" is now obsolete. The use of seminary in reference to training schools for Roman Catholic clergy dates from the 16th century. Today the word refers equally to Catholic, Protestant, or Jewish colleges for training priests, ministers, or rabbis. Seminary has also been applied to other kinds of schools. When they were first formed in the 19th century, colleges for women were called "female seminaries" or "seminaries for young ladies."