Definition of "diaconate" [di•ac•o•nate]

• The rank, office, or tenure of a deacon. (noun)
• Deacons considered as a group. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "He summarized the state of deaconess issue as follows: The possibility of ordaining women to the diaconate is still an unsettled question in the Catholic Church."
• "The word diaconate means service; helpful service."
• "This week, we bring you an exclusive interview in which Jeremy Halcrow asks Dean of Sydney, and director of Ministry, Training and Development, Phillip Jensen about the implications of the new long-term diaconate and its relationship with the goals of the Diocesan Mission."