Main Entry:: chan·cery
Pronunciation:: \ˈchan(t)-sə-rē, ˈchan(t)s-rē\
Function:: noun
Inflected Form(s):: plural chan·cer·ies
Etymology:: Middle English chancerie, alteration of chancelerie chancellery, from Anglo-French, from chanceler
Date:: 14th century

1: a record office for public archives or those of ecclesiastical, legal, or diplomatic proceedings2 acapitalized : a high court of equity in England and Wales with common-law functions and jurisdiction over causes in equity b: a court of equity in the American judicial system c: the principles and practice of judicial equity3 a: a chancellor's court or office or the building in which it is located b: the office in which the business of a Roman Catholic diocese is transacted and recorded c: the office of an embassy : chancellery 3

— in chancery

1: in litigation in a court of chancery ; also : under the superintendence of the lord chancellor <a ward in chancery>2: in a hopeless predicament

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