anchoress

American  

[ang-ker-is] / ˈæŋ kər ɪs /

noun

1. a woman who is an anchorite.

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Gender

What's the difference between anchoress and anchor? See -ess.

Etymology

Origin of anchoress

First recorded in 1350–1400; late Middle English anchoryse, Middle English ankres, equivalent to ancre anchorite + -es -ess

Example Sentences

Julian lived as an anchoress, a type of religious hermit, and was likely bricked up inside a small stone cell during her 40-odd years of monastic life.

From New York Times • Jan. 21, 2011

An old woman sits under the window; the anchoress appears and a conversation begins.

From A Literary History of the English People From the Origins to the Renaissance by Jusserand, Jean Jules

Is the case of this anchoress a unique one?

From A Literary History of the English People From the Origins to the Renaissance by Jusserand, Jean Jules

The country was full of devotees who had taken religious vows, which they fulfilled either in the many monasteries and convents, or often in single cells, as "hermit" or "anchoress."

From Mysticism in English Literature by Spurgeon, Caroline F. E.

The "cold, wise one," the "anchoress," fell in love with him soon after the lessons began, but carefully hid her feelings from every one.

From The Loves of Great Composers by Kobbé, Gustav