What does ordainer mean?
An ordainer is someone who formally appoints another person to a position or role. Its most familiar use is religious: in Christian churches, an ordainer is a minister or bishop who conducts the ordination of a person entering ministry. The word can also refer more broadly to a person or authority that establishes rules, directs an institution, or authorizes an arrangement. Compared with the everyday term “appointing official,” “ordainer” often suggests a formal and ceremonially significant act. The term is therefore especially associated with religious institutions, legal traditions, and other contexts in which responsibility is conferred through an authoritative procedure.
A person who ordains, especially a bishop or minister who formally appoints someone to religious service.
"The archdeacon was present as the ordainer."
This is the most common modern use of the word.
A person or authority that formally establishes, authorizes, or directs something.
"The regent was regarded as the ordainer of the new charter."
This broader use is formal and less common than the religious sense.
The plural is used when referring to more than one person who ordains or formally establishes something.
"The two ordainers completed the ceremony according to the church's rites."
In religious use, an ordainer is the person who formally appoints another person to spiritual service.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does ordainer come from?
“Ordainer” is an English formation based on the verb “ordain” and the suffix “-er,” meaning a person who performs the action. “Ordain” entered English through Old French and ultimately derives from Latin ordinare, a word associated with ordering, arranging, or putting into a prescribed form. The wider English family includes “ordinance,” “ordinary,” and “ordinal,” all reflecting the same Latin root idea of order or arrangement.
Related word forms
How ordainer is actually used
The word is most common in religious and formal or institutional contexts. In everyday English, “minister,” “bishop,” or “appointing authority” may be more natural depending on the specific role.
Easily confused with ordainer
An ordainer performs the act of ordaining or formally establishing someone or something.
An ordainer appoints or consecrates someone; an ordinee is the person who receives ordination.