glebe
1
9.9
A piece of land owned by a church that helps support its priest
- noun
- /ɡliːb/
- Archaic
:
gleba
- Traditionally, the income from the glebe helped support the village vicar.
Examples
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The boundaries of the glebe were marked with ancient stone walls.
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The local church sold a portion of its glebe to fund repairs to the roof.
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The church owned a small glebe.
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Many parishes had their own glebes historically.
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The church owns a large glebe that has been used for farming for centuries.
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In the past, the parish priest relied on the income from the glebe to support his family.
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The villagers gathered to discuss the future of the glebe and its importance to the community.
Synonyms
church property
vsglebe
3
3.7
Land, buildings, or money that a church owns for its religious use
is a specific parcel of parish land held to support the local priest
Compounds
How Big
Surface Forms
Etymology
Glebe comes from the Latin word gleba, which means 'lump of earth' or 'soil'. That's why a glebe is the small plot of land that belonged to a parish church to help support its priest.