Definitions

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

  • noun A group of persons, vehicles, or objects moving along in an orderly, formal manner.
  • noun The movement of such a group.
  • noun Theology Origination; emanation.
  • intransitive verb To form or go in a procession.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To go in procession.
  • To treat or beset with processions.
  • In some of the American colonies, to go about in order to settle the boundaries of, as land. The term is still used in North Carolina and Tennessee. Compare to beat the bounds, under bound.
  • noun The act of proceeding or issuing forth or from anything.
  • noun A succession of persons walking, or riding on horseback or in vehicles, in a formal march, or moving with ceremonious solemnity.
  • noun An office, form of worship, hymn, litany, etc., said or sung by a number of persons advancing with a measured and uniform movement.

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

  • transitive verb (Law), Local, U. S. (North Carolina and Tennessee). To ascertain, mark, and establish the boundary lines of, as lands.
  • intransitive verb rare To march in procession.
  • noun The act of proceeding, moving on, advancing, or issuing; regular, orderly, or ceremonious progress; continuous course.
  • noun That which is moving onward in an orderly, stately, or solemn manner; a train of persons advancing in order; a ceremonious train; a retinue
  • noun (Eccl.) An orderly and ceremonial progress of persons, either from the sacristy to the choir, or from the choir around the church, within or without.
  • noun (Eccl.) An old term for litanies which were said in procession and not kneeling.
  • noun a theological term applied to the relation of the Holy Spirit to the Father and the Son, the Eastern Church affirming that the Spirit proceeds from the Father only, and the Western Church that the Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son.
  • noun a name for Rogation week, when processions were made; Cross-week.
  • intransitive verb rare To honor with a procession.

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

  • noun The act of progressing or proceeding
  • noun A group of people or things moving along in an orderly manner, especially if doing so slowly and formally
  • noun A number of things happening in sequence (in space or in time)
  • verb intransitive To take part in a procession
  • verb transitive, dated To honour with a procession

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

  • noun the group action of a collection of people or animals or vehicles moving ahead in more or less regular formation
  • noun the act of moving forward (as toward a goal)
  • noun (theology) the origination of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost

Etymologies

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

[Middle English, from Old French, from Late Latin prōcessiō, prōcessiōn-, from Latin, an advance, from prōcessus, past participle of prōcēdere, to advance; see proceed.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English processioun, from Old French pourciession, from Latin processio ("a marching forward, an advance, in Late Latin a religious procession"), from procedere, past participle processus ("to move forward, advance, proceed"); see proceed.

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Examples

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  • "In some of the American colonies, to go about in order to settle the boundaries of, as land. The term is still used in North Carolina and Tennessee. Compare to beat the bounds, under bound."

    --CD&C

    May 17, 2012