Chapel

n. [O. Fr. chapele, capele, N. Fr. chapelle, Pr. & Pg. capella, Sp. capilla, It. cappella, L. Lat. capella, originally a short cloak, hood, or cowl; a sacred vessel, chapel. It is said that the kings of France, in war, carried St. Martin's hat into the field, which was kept in a tent as a precious relic, whence the place took the name capella, a little hat, and the priest who had the custody of the tent was called capellanus, now chaplain. See CAP and CAPE.

1Sense 1. A lesser or inferior place of worship, sometimes a part of, or subordinate to, another church.

In Catholic churches, and also in cathedrals and abbey churches, chapels are usually annexed in the recesses on the sides of the aisles. Gwilt.

2Sense 2. A place of worship not connected with a church; as, the domestic chapel of a nobleman in his residence.

3Sense 3. A place of worship used by dissenters from the established church in England; a meeting-house.

4Sense 4. A choir of singers, or an orchestra, attached to the court of a prince or nobleman.

5Sense 5. (Print.) (a.) A printer's work-house; a printing-office, said to be so called because when printing was first introduced into England, it was carried on in a chapel near Westminster Abbey. (b.) An association of workmen in a printing-office.

To hold a chapel (Print.), to meet together, as the men employed in a printing-office, for the purpose of considering or framing rules and regulations for the good order of the establishment.

v. t. 1. To deposit in a chapel. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl. 2. (Naut.) To turn round, as a ship, in a light breeze of wind, when taken aback, so as to put it on the same tack without bracing the head yards. Totten.