WordGarden.ioferial
C2Pronunciation
UK
- /fˈiərɪəl/
US
Meanings
Adjective
relating to an ordinary weekday, especially one with no church feast
Beyond the definition
The word ferial is mostly used in religious or historical writing. It describes an ordinary weekday, especially one that is not a feast day or holiday. Think of the flow of the church calendar: some days are marked for special celebration, while others are simply regular weekdays. Those regular days are ferial.
You will often see it in phrases like ferial day or ferial office, where it points to the prayers or services for an ordinary weekday. It is not a common everyday word now, but it still appears when people talk about liturgy, church history, or older texts.
The word ferial describes something related to an ordinary weekday, especially in contrast to a feast day, Sunday, or holiday. Today it is mostly found in religious, historical, and formal writing rather than in casual conversation. When the word appears, it usually carries the idea of the regular pattern of the week rather than a day set apart for celebration.
Its best-known use is in Christian liturgy. In that setting, a ferial day is a normal weekday in the church calendar, and a ferial office is the office appointed for such a day. In other words, if the calendar is not calling for a major feast or other special observance, the day may be described as ferial. This is why the word shows up so often in discussions of prayer books, liturgical rules, and older church documents.
Outside that setting, the word can sometimes be used more broadly to mean "of weekdays" or "ordinary rather than festive," but that use is much less common. It usually does not mean simply "boring" or "mundane" in a general sense. If you meet it in a text, the safest reading is usually connected to weekdays and the contrast between regular days and special days.
So while you probably will not use ferial in daily speech, it is a useful word to know if you read religious writing, church history, or older English. It names the quiet, regular weekday standing beside the feast day and helps make that contrast clear.
Examples
- 1
Church calendar
On ferial days, the parish follows its usual morning schedule.
- Domainferial days
ordinary weekdays in the church calendar
- 2
Mass type
Because it was a ferial Mass, the music and readings were fairly simple.
- Domainferial Mass
a service for an ordinary day, not a special feast
- 3
Prayer book
The breviary gives different prayers for Advent Sundays and for ferial weekdays.
See also
Forms and spellings
1 form open this card.
Main spelling
- ferialadjective