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sinecure - 5 dictionary results

si⋅ne⋅cure

  [sahy-ni-kyoor, sin-i-]
Use sinecure in a Sentence
–noun
1. an office or position requiring little or no work, esp. one yielding profitable returns.
2. an ecclesiastical benefice without cure of souls.
Origin:
1655–65; < ML (beneficium) sine cūrā (benefice) without care; see cure

Related forms:
si⋅ne⋅cure⋅ship, noun
si⋅ne⋅cur⋅ism, noun
si⋅ne⋅cur⋅ist, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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si·ne·cure   (sī'nĭ-kyŏŏr', sĭn'ĭ-)   
n.  
  1. A position or office that requires little or no work but provides a salary.
  2. Archaic An ecclesiastical benefice not attached to the spiritual duties of a parish.

[From Medieval Latin (beneficium) sine cūrā, (benefice) without cure (of souls) : Latin sine, without + Latin cūrā, ablative of cūra, care; see cure.]
si'ne·cur·ism n., si'ne·cur'ist n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Sinecure

Si`ne*cure\, n. [L. sine without + cura care, LL., a cure. See Cure.]

1. An ecclesiastical benefice without the care of souls. --Ayliffe.

2. Any office or position which requires or involves little or no responsibility, labor, or active service.

A lucrative sinecure in the Excise. --Macaulay.

Sinecure

Si"ne*cure\, v. t. To put or place in a sinecure.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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sinecure 
1662, "church benefice without parish duties," from M.L. beneficium sine cura "benefice without care" (of souls), from L. sine "without" + cura, ablative sing. of cura "care" (see cure).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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