Meanings
churchward1
plural churchwards
- obsoleteChristianityObsolete form of churchwarden.
churchward2
Churchward3
- A surname originating as an occupation.
1 more example
In the present writer's opinion there was no greater and more successful locomotive engineer in the country, during the first quarter-century, than George Jackson Churchward of the Great Western Railway. This statement is made without prejudice, for I was brought up on the other line extending from Waterloo to Padstow, and between Swindon and Eastleigh there was a great gulf fixed.
1957 July 28, C. Hamilton Ellis, “Six Decades of Locomotives”, in Railway Magazine, page 471
Origin
churchward · noun
- Old Englishcyrce
- Englishchurchward
A contraction of churchwarden, in turn from Old English cyrce + weard a "churchwarden" or "sacristan".
More words from Old English
Full word history & related roots →churchward · adverb
- Middle Englishcherche ward
- Englishchurchward
From Middle English cherche ward, chercheward, chircheward, churchewarde, chyrche-ward, chyrcheward, kirkeward, kurk-ward, kurkward, kyrkward; equivalent to church + -ward.
More words from Middle English
Full word history & related roots →Churchward · proper noun
An occupational family name, a contraction of churchwarden, in turn from Old English cyrce weard a "churchwarden" or "sacristan".
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
churchward. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/churchward
“churchward.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/churchward. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “churchward,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/churchward.
Source: churchward on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.