either of two high priests of Lamaism, the Dalai Lama or the Panchen Lama
Grand Lama in American English
Dalai Lama
Grand Lama in American English
noun
the chief monk and ruler of Tibet: called the Dalai Lama since the middle of the 17th century
Word origin
[1930–35]This word is first recorded in the period 1930–35. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: DNA, acoustic phonetics, hypercorrection, technical foul, uncertainty principle