cantor
noun
can·tor ˈkan-tər 
1
: a choir leader : precentor
2
: a synagogue official who sings or chants liturgical music and leads the congregation in prayer
cantorial
kan-ˈtȯr-ē-əl
adjective 
Did you know?
The cantor is, after the rabbi, the most important figure in a Jewish worship service. A cantor not only must possess an excellent singing voice but also must know by heart long passages of Hebrew. Cantors such as Jan Peerce and Richard Tucker became international opera stars. The comedian and singer Edward Israel Iskowitz renamed himself Eddie Cantor for his original profession and became enormously popular on stage, screen, radio, and television for over 40 years.
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Roytman, of Wilmette, cantor at Beth Hillel Bnai Emunah of Wilmette, was supposed to be honored two years ago with a celebration honoring his 10th anniversary of BHBE service but the COVID-19 pandemic postponed the event. 
Karie Angell Luc, Chicago Tribune, 22 Aug. 2022 Two Marines placed a wreath on the stone crypt containing the ashes of Holocaust victims and Biden listened as a cantor recited the remembrance prayer. Arkansas Online, 14 July 2022 Rabbi Hazzan Jeffrey Myers has served as the rabbi and cantor for the Tree of Life in Pittsburgh since the summer of 2017. Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, CNN, 25 Aug. 2022 Two Marines placed a wreath on the stone crypt containing the ashes of Holocaust victims and Biden listened as a cantor recited the remembrance prayer. Arkansas Online, 14 July 2022 Sometimes the cantor in the group played guitar for his mostly Protestant colleagues. New York Times, 14 Aug. 2022 One sticks out to cantor and chaplain Michael Zoosman: a February 2021 response from the Polunsky Unit prison in which Ramiro Gonzales offered to donate a kidney to one of Zoosman’s congregants. María Luisa Paúl, Washington Post, 12 July 2022 Two Marines placed a wreath on the stone crypt containing the ashes of Holocaust victims and Biden listened as a cantor recited the remembrance prayer. Arkansas Online, 14 July 2022 Two Marines placed a wreath on the stone crypt containing the ashes of Holocaust victims and Biden listened as a cantor recited the remembrance prayer. Josh Boak, Chicago Tribune, 13 July 2022 See More
Karie Angell Luc, Chicago Tribune, 22 Aug. 2022 Two Marines placed a wreath on the stone crypt containing the ashes of Holocaust victims and Biden listened as a cantor recited the remembrance prayer. Arkansas Online, 14 July 2022 Rabbi Hazzan Jeffrey Myers has served as the rabbi and cantor for the Tree of Life in Pittsburgh since the summer of 2017. Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, CNN, 25 Aug. 2022 Two Marines placed a wreath on the stone crypt containing the ashes of Holocaust victims and Biden listened as a cantor recited the remembrance prayer. Arkansas Online, 14 July 2022 Sometimes the cantor in the group played guitar for his mostly Protestant colleagues. New York Times, 14 Aug. 2022 One sticks out to cantor and chaplain Michael Zoosman: a February 2021 response from the Polunsky Unit prison in which Ramiro Gonzales offered to donate a kidney to one of Zoosman’s congregants. María Luisa Paúl, Washington Post, 12 July 2022 Two Marines placed a wreath on the stone crypt containing the ashes of Holocaust victims and Biden listened as a cantor recited the remembrance prayer. Arkansas Online, 14 July 2022 Two Marines placed a wreath on the stone crypt containing the ashes of Holocaust victims and Biden listened as a cantor recited the remembrance prayer. Josh Boak, Chicago Tribune, 13 July 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Latin, singer, from canere to sing
First Known Use
1538, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Kids Definition
cantor
noun
can·tor ˈkan-tər
: a synagogue official who sings religious music and leads the congregation in prayer
cantor
noun
as in chorister
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- chorister
- singer
- chanter
- vocalist
- songster
- caroler
- voice
- crooner
- serenader
- harmonizer
- yodeler
- warbler
- caroller
- vocalizer
- belter
- chansonnier
- hummer
- bard
- chanteuse
- troubadour
- songstress