nun

¹

[ nuhn ]

noun

1. a woman member of a religious order, especially one bound by vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience.
2. any of various birds, especially a domestic variety of pigeon.

nun

²

[ noon, noon ]

noun

1. the 14th letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
2. the consonant sound represented by this letter.

nūn

³

[ noon ]

noun

1. the 25th letter of the Arabic alphabet.

Nun

⁴

[ noon ]

noun

, Egyptian Religion.

1. oldest of the ancient Egyptian gods, personifying the primordial ocean from which the world was formed; father of Ra, the sun god.

nun

¹

/ nʊn /

noun

1. the 14th letter in the Hebrew alphabet (נ or, at the end of a word, ן), transliterated as n

nun

²

/ nʌn /

noun

1. a female member of a religious order
2. sometimes capital a variety of domestic fancy pigeon usually having a black-and-white plumage with a ridged peak or cowl of short white feathers

nun

1. A female member of a religious order , living in a convent , whose work is confined to the convent. The term is also applied broadly to other female members of religious orders (“sisters”) who often live outside their convents and work as teachers, nurses, social workers, or administrators.

Derived Forms

• ˈnunlike, adjective

Other Words From

• nunlike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of nun¹

before 900; Middle English, Old English nunne < Medieval Latin nonna, feminine of nonnus monk

Origin of nun²

First recorded in 1875–80, nun is from the Hebrew word nūn literally, fish

Origin of nun³

From Arabic; nun ², nu ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of nun¹

Old English nunne, from Church Latin nonna, from Late Latin: form of address used for an elderly woman

Example Sentences

Nothing about the show turned out to be what it looked like at first: a standard albeit graphically gory serial killer cop show with a Murphy-esque horror twist, pairing Nash-Betts’ Lois, an alcoholic cop at the end of a failing marriage, with Micaela Diamond’s Sister Megan, a homicide-obsessed nun and…practicing journalist?

From Salon

Megan isn’t a nun but a fellow detective married to a violent man Lois shoots in the face… or does she?

From Salon

Meanwhile, Isabella Rossellini, who plays a watchful nun in “Conclave,” has appeared in two films that Tucci directed, including his beloved “Big Night.”

From Los Angeles Times

And there hasn’t been a Carmelite nun–style massacre.

From Slate

But a Catholic faith so strong that she once seriously contemplated becoming a nun helped sustain her.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• sister