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choir (kwīr)
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n.
1. An organized company of singers, especially one performing church music or singing in a church.
2.
a. The part of a church used by such a company of singers.
b. The part of the chancel in a cruciform church that is occupied by this company of singers.
3.
a. A group of instruments of the same kind: a string choir.
b. A division of some pipe organs, containing pipes suitable for accompanying a choir.
4. An organized group: a choir of dancers.
5. One of the orders of angels.
intr.v. choired, choir·ing, choirs
To sing in chorus.

[Middle English quer, quire, from Old French cuer, from Medieval Latin chorus, from Latin, choral dance; see CHORUS.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.