Noun: ostiary 'ós-tee,e-ree [N. Amer], ós-tee-u-ree [Brit]
- Someone who guards an entrance
"The ostiary checked everyone's credentials at the church door";
- doorkeeper, door guard, hall porter, porter, gatekeeper
- The lowest of the minor Holy Orders in the unreformed Western Church but now suppressed by the Roman Catholic Church
"In medieval times, the ostiary was responsible for guarding the church doors";
- doorkeeper, ostiarius [archaic]
Derived forms: ostiaries
Type of: guard, Holy Order, Order, reverend
Encyclopedia: Ostiary