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monk
- 11 dictionary resultsmonk
[muhngk] 
–noun
| 1. | (in Christianity) a man who has withdrawn from the world for religious reasons, esp. as a member of an order of cenobites living according to a particular rule and under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. |
| 2. | (in any religion) a man who is a member of a monastic order: a Buddhist monk. |
| 3. | Printing. a dark area on a printed page caused by uneven inking of the plate or type. Compare friar (def. 2). |
Origin:
bef. 900; ME; OE munuc < LL monachus < Gk monachós hermit, n. use of adj.: solitary, equiv. to món(os) alone + -achos adj. suffix
bef. 900; ME; OE munuc < LL monachus < Gk monachós hermit, n. use of adj.: solitary, equiv. to món(os) alone + -achos adj. suffix
Synonyms:
1. brother. Monk, friar refer to members of special male groups whose lives are devoted to the service of the church, esp. in Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox denominations. A monk is properly a member of a monastery, under a superior; he is bound by a vow of stability, and is a co-owner of the community property of the monastery. Since the Reformation, monk and friar have been used as if they were the same. A friar is, however, strictly speaking, a member of a mendicant order, whose members are not attached to a monastery and own no community property.
1. brother. Monk, friar refer to members of special male groups whose lives are devoted to the service of the church, esp. in Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox denominations. A monk is properly a member of a monastery, under a superior; he is bound by a vow of stability, and is a co-owner of the community property of the monastery. Since the Reformation, monk and friar have been used as if they were the same. A friar is, however, strictly speaking, a member of a mendicant order, whose members are not attached to a monastery and own no community property.
Monk
[muhngk] –noun
| 1. | (James) Arthur (Art), born 1957, U.S. football player. |
| 2. | The⋅lo⋅ni⋅ous [thuh-loh-nee-uhs] (Sphere), 1917–1982, U.S. jazz pianist and composer. |
| 3. | George. Monck, George. |
Monck
[muhngk] –noun
| 1. | Sir Charles Stanley, (4th Viscount Monck, 1st Baron Monck), 1819–94, British colonial administrator, born in Ireland: governor general of Canada 1861–68. |
| 2. | Also, Monk. George, (1st Duke of Albermarle and Earl of Torrington), 1608–70, English general. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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|
Link To monk
| Monck or Monk (mŭngk) English general who was instrumental in the restoration of Charles II (1660) and supervised London during the plague of 1665. |
| monk (mŭngk) n. A man who is a member of a brotherhood living in a monastery and devoted to a discipline prescribed by his order: a Carthusian monk; a Buddhist monk. [Middle English munk, from Old English munuc, from Late Latin monachus, from Late Greek monakhos, from Greek, single, from monos; see men-4 in Indo-European roots.] |
| Monk (mŭngk) American football player. As a wide receiver with the Washington Redskins, he set (1992) a National Football League record for career receptions. |
| Monk, George See George Monck. |
| Monk, Thelonious Sphere 1917-1982. American jazz pianist and composer whose spare style and unusual harmonic sense made him one of the most influential modern jazz musicians. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Monk
Monk\, n. [AS. munuc, munec, munc, L. monachus, Gr. ?, fr. ? alone. Cf. Monachism.]1. A man who retires from the ordinary temporal concerns of the world, and devotes himself to religion; one of a religious community of men inhabiting a monastery, and bound by vows to a life of chastity, obedience, and poverty. "A monk out of his cloister." --Chaucer. Monks in some respects agree with regulars, as in the substantial vows of religion; but in other respects monks and regulars differ; for that regulars, vows excepted, are not tied up to so strict a rule of life as monks are. --Ayliffe. 2. (Print.) A blotch or spot of ink on a printed page, caused by the ink not being properly distributed. It is distinguished from a friar, or white spot caused by a deficiency of ink. 3. A piece of tinder made of agaric, used in firing the powder hose or train of a mine. 4. (Zo["o]l.) (a) A South American monkey (Pithecia monachus); also applied to other species, as Cebus xanthocephalus. (b) The European bullfinch. Monk bat (Zo["o]l.), a South American and West Indian bat (Molossus nasutus); -- so called because the males live in communities by themselves. Monk bird(Zo["o]l.), the friar bird. Monk seal (Zo["o]l.), a species of seal (Monachus albiventer) inhabiting the Black Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, and the adjacent parts of the Atlantic. Monk's rhubarb (Bot.), a kind of dock; -- also called patience (Rumex Patientia).
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : monk
Spanish:
monje,
German:
der Mönch,
Japanese:
修道士
monk
O.E. munuc, from P.Gmc. *muniko- (cf. O.Fris. munek, M.Du. monic, O.H.G. munih, Ger. Mönch), an early borrowing from V.L. *monicus (cf. Fr. moine, Sp. monje, It. monaco), from L.L. monachus "monk," originally "religious hermit," from Late Gk. monakhos "monk," noun use of a classical Gk. adj. meaning "solitary," from monos "alone" (see mono-).
"In England, before the Reformation, the term was not applied to the members of the mendicant orders, who were always called friars. From the 16th c. to the 19th c., however, it was usual to speak of the friars as a class of monks. In recent times the distinction between the terms has been carefully observed by well-informed writers. In Fr. and Ger. the equivalent of monk is applied equally to 'monks' and 'friars.' " [OED]
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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monk
man who separates himself from society and lives either alone (a hermit or anchorite) or in an organized community in order to devote himself full time to religious life. See monasticism.
Learn more about monk with a free trial on Britannica.com.
Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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