Definition of: sexton

(seks′tən) noun
1. A janitor of a church having charge also of ringing the bell, overseeing burials, etc.; also, formerly, a grave-digger.
2. Any of certain carrion beetles (genus Necrophorus) that bury small dead animals by excavating the ground beneath them: also called burying beetle. The larvae feed on the maggots in the rotting flesh. ♦ Homophone: sextan. [<AF segerstaine, OF secrestein <Med. L sacristanus. Doublet of SACRISTAN.]
—sex′ton·ship noun