Min"is*try (?), n.;
pl. Ministries (#). [L. ministerium. See Minister, n., and cf. Mystery a trade.]
1. The act of
ministering; ministration; service. "With tender ministry."
Thomson.
2. Hence:
Agency; instrumentality.
The ordinary ministry of second causes.
Atterbury.
The wicked
ministry of arms.
Dryden.
3. The office, duties, or functions of a minister, servant, or agent; ecclesiastical, executive, or ambassadorial function or profession.
4.
The body of ministers of state; also, the clergy, as a body.
5. Administration; rule; term in power; as, the
ministry of
Pitt.
Hear it pronounced