Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A singer in a choir, especially a choirboy or choirgirl.
  • noun A leader of a choir.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A singer in a choir or chorus; specifically, a male member of a church choir.
  • noun In some churches, a choir-leader or precentor; one who leads the singing of the choir or the congregation.—
  • noun A singer in general: as, the feathered choristers.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun One of a choir; a singer in a chorus.
  • noun United States One who leads a choir in church music.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A singer in a choir
  • noun A director or leader of a choral group.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a singer in a choir

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English queristre, from Anglo-Norman *cueristre, from Medieval Latin chorista, from chorus, chorus, from Latin, choral dance; see chorus.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Derived from choir +‎ -ster.

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Examples

  • Noel had loved one deeply -- the word "chorister" was so enchanting; and because of his whiteness, and hair which had no grease on it, but stood up all bright; she had never spoken to him -- a far worship, like that for a star.

    Complete Project Gutenberg John Galsworthy Works John Galsworthy 1900

  • "chorister" was so enchanting; and because of his whiteness, and hair which had no grease on it, but stood up all bright; she had never spoken to him -- a far worship, like that for a star.

    Saint's Progress John Galsworthy 1900

  • If one had to narrow it down, the most formative factors in Mr. Muhly's childhood were the rise of the Internet and his work as a boy chorister in Providence, R.I. Much of his music has the feel of a computer desktop with multiple windows open at the same time.

    All in a Day's Work, Polygamy Included Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim 2011

  • As a child, Jeffreys took piano lessons and was a chorister.

    John Jeffreys obituary John Turner 2010

  • About 9% of the total operating budget would go toward orchestra and chorister salaries, down from 13% last year, opera officials said.

    City Opera Performances in Jeopardy Jennifer Maloney 2011

  • It would be unthinkable today for an Oxbridge choral scholar, or just about any young British chorister, not to sing the full Messiah regularly.

    Massive Messiah 2011

  • It relieved professional chorister Christopher Nemec to see the young people bring dedication and skill to the chorus, an art form many have feared may be dying out.

    High Schoolers Perform with Masters at Carnegie Hall 2011

  • As a boy chorister in his Czech-Moravian homeland, Janácek 1854-1928 learned early the potential of choral writing.

    Janácek: Choral Works – review 2012

  • When he joined the choir at age 8 ½, singing treble, he was told that he would never be more than a chorister.

    The King of the Lyric Basses Barrymore Laurence Scherer 2010

  • My earliest Messiah memories belong to childhood days in the 1960s as a chorister at Canterbury cathedral being giving arias to perform as a unison group.

    Massive Messiah 2011

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