monastery

[ mon-uh-ster-ee ]

noun

, plural mon·as·ter·ies.

1. a house or place of residence occupied by a community of persons, especially monks, living in seclusion under religious vows.

   Synonyms: lamasery, friary, priory, abbey, cloister

2. the community of persons living in such a place.

monastery

/ ˌmɒnəˈstɪərɪəl; ˈmɒnəstərɪ; -strɪ /

noun

1. the residence of a religious community, esp of monks, living in seclusion from secular society and bound by religious vows

Derived Forms

• monasterial, adjective

Other Words From

• mon·as·te·ri·al [mon-, uh, -, steer, -ee-, uh, l], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of monastery¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Late Latin monastērium, from Late Greek monastḗrion “monk house,” originally, “hermit's cell,” equivalent to monas-, variant stem of monázein “to be alone” + -tērion neuter adjective suffix denoting place; mono-

Word History and Origins

Origin of monastery¹

C15: from Church Latin monastērium, from Late Greek monastērion, from Greek monázein to live alone, from monos alone

Example Sentences

The islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland are uninhabited, apart from a team of scientists working out of the main island's solitary building, although there are also the ruins of a 6th Century Celtic monastery.

From BBC

By nighttime Tuesday, the village of Ain Ebel was almost completely deserted, with only a handful of residents staying behind while the others fled to a monastery in the nearby Christian village of Rmeish.

From Los Angeles Times

In Myanmar, state media reports that nearly 66,000 houses had been destroyed as of Friday evening, along with 375 schools and a monastery.

From BBC

The Biddle’s excavations of the mound found the remains of 264 adults, dating back to the late 9th Century, piled in the shattered remains of an Anglo Saxon monastery.

From BBC

It is once thought to have held the tombs of Mercian kings but was likely ransacked, along with the neighbouring monastery, when the Vikings seized the town.

From BBC