altar girl
1
5.5
- noun
- /ˈɔltər ɡɜrl/
:
monaguilla
- As an altar girl, she helped the priest during Mass by carrying the cross and lighting candles.
Examples
-
During the ceremony, the altar girl assisted the priest by holding the chalice and preparing the altar.
-
When it came time for the little altar girl to hold the missal, she had to balance it on top of her head, and I felt quite afraid for her.
Fiction book (1999) -
When she first became an altar girl, she felt proud to serve in front of the congregation.
Synonyms
23
3.6
A boy who helps a priest during church services
4
9.2
A person who helps a priest in a church service
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a girl who serves at the altar' is directly derivable from combining 'altar' (place or table used in worship) with 'girl' (a young female); the modifier signals role/association with the altar. This attributive noun pattern is common in English and cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will very likely infer the intended meaning.
Etymology
The noun altar girl comes from the simple image of a girl standing at the altar to help the priest during a church service. When churches began allowing girls to do this job, people called them altar girls, so today it means 'a girl who helps at the altar'.