The Reverend

[5] In traditional and formal English usage it is still considered incorrect to drop the definite article, the, before Reverend.

[3] Use of the prefix with the surname alone, e.g. "The Reverend Smith", is incorrect (a solecism) in formal usage.

This has traditionally been considered incorrect on the basis that it is equivalent to referring to a judge as being an honourable or an adult man as a mister, both of which are also grammatically improper.

When several clergy are referred to, they are often styled individually (e.g. "The Reverend John Smith and the Reverend Henry Brown"); in a list of clergy, the Revv is sometimes put before the list of names, especially in the Catholic Church in Britain and Ireland.

[10] In a unique case, the Reverend was used to refer to a church consistory, a local administrative body.

Profile of John Wesley , a major religious leader of the 18th century. He is styled The Revᵈ. , an abbreviation of "The Reverend".