procession
/prəˈsɛʃ(ə)n
/noun
1A number of people or vehicles moving forward in an orderly fashion, especially as part of a ceremony: a funeral procession...
- A car bomber drove his vehicle into a funeral procession, a funeral procession for one of the local prominent tribal leaders there.
- When the most famous composer of the age died, about thirty thousand mourners were present at the funeral procession on March 26, 1827.
- Catholic countries like Spain make the most of the holy season (semana santa) with torchlit processions and extravagant religious ceremonies.
Synonyms
parade, march, cavalcade, motorcade, carcade, cortège;
column, file, train;
march past;
Indian jatha, yatra;
West Indian mas
1.1 [mass noun] The action of moving forward in an orderly way: the fully robed civic dignitaries walk in procession...
- On the 10th day, the ruler, in silk and priceless gems, wended his way in procession through the crowded streets on the gorgeously caparisoned elephant.
- On September 18, all the idols would be taken in procession and immersed in River Cauvery.
- The idol was, and is, annually dragged forth in procession on a monstrous car, and as masses of excited pilgrims crowded round to drag or accompany it, accidents occurred.
1.2A relentless succession of people or things: magistrates complain that they see a procession of recidivist minor offenders...
- They streamed away like a procession of stars on the dark waters.
- Above them streamed a procession of ghosts, one of whom had trailed a foot through Draco's shoulder on the way past, as many as twenty or twenty-five of them.
- That was all Carlin had to do before picking the ball out of the net with seven minutes remaining as the game deteriorated into a series of hopeful and hopeless long balls and a procession of errant passes.
Synonyms
series, succession, stream, steady stream, string, sequence, chain, run
2 [mass noun] Theology The emanation of the Holy Spirit.On the filioque controversy, Bulgakov demonstrates that the East did not have a formal theology for the procession of the Holy Spirit....
- At this point Pope Hadrian I defended the doctrine of procession through the Son against Charlemagne.
- From the formality of the opening procession to the intimacy of Communion, God wants to fill our hearts and minds with his truth, his love, and his power.
Derivatives
processionist
- As far as one could judge the great bulk of the processionists were unemployed.
- A clash between the police and the processionists looked imminent.
- A spokesman has condemned the use of force over the processionists and the arrest of the leaders and workers.
Origin
Late Old English, via Old French from Latin processio(n-), from procedere 'move forward' (see proceed).