What does "vestry" mean?

A room in a church where the clergy put on their vestments and where these are stored; also used for meetings and classes; a sacristy.

What is a synonym for "vestry"?

Common synonyms include: sacristy, ambry, apse, baptistery, blindstory, chancel.

Vestry

//ˈvɛstɹi// noun

noun ·Uncommon ·College level

Definitions

Noun

1
A room in a church where the clergy put on their vestments and where these are stored; also used for meetings and classes; a sacristy.
"The choirboys change into their cassocks in the vestry."
2
a room in a church where sacred vessels and vestments are kept or meetings are held wordnet
3
A committee of parishioners elected to administer the temporal affairs of a parish.
"The vestry meets on the first Tuesday of every month."
4
in the Protestant Episcopal Church: a committee elected by the congregation to work with the churchwardens in managing the temporal affairs of the church wordnet
5
An assembly of persons who manage parochial affairs; so called because usually held in a vestry.

Synonyms

All synonyms

sacristy ambry apse baptistery blindstory chancel

Example

More examples

"But surely, if your supernatural theory be correct, it could work the young man evil in London as easily as in Devonshire. A devil with merely local powers like a parish vestry would be too inconceivable a thing."

Etymology

From Anglo-Norman vesterie, from Old French vestiaire (“room for vestments, dressing room”), from Latin vestiarium (“wardrobe”). Doublet of vestiary.

More for "vestry"

Synonyms Sentences Pronunciation Translate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonyms See usage examples Check pronunciation Browse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.