variants
or ancress
as in prioress
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of anchoress
In the medieval church, women’s roles were limited – usually some form of enclosure and celibacy, such as becoming an anchoress walled up alone for life, or a nun in a classic convent.
—
Joelle Rollo-Koster, The Conversation, 25 Feb. 2025
Louise, a former anchoress, is her humble, tyrannical maid.
—Hervé Guibert, Harper's Magazine, 2 Nov. 2024
Some of the spotlighted individuals, like St. Catherine of Siena and English anchoress Julian of Norwich, were celebrated in their day as visionaries, while others, including Kempe and Joan of Arc, were persecuted as heretics.
—Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 Oct. 2024
Joelle Rollo-Koster, The Conversation, 25 Feb. 2025
Louise, a former anchoress, is her humble, tyrannical maid.
—Hervé Guibert, Harper's Magazine, 2 Nov. 2024
Some of the spotlighted individuals, like St. Catherine of Siena and English anchoress Julian of Norwich, were celebrated in their day as visionaries, while others, including Kempe and Joan of Arc, were persecuted as heretics.
—Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anchoress
Noun
-
In response, the diocese said in a statement that the Holy See has acted toward healing the Arlington Carmel and the nuns in the community and not simply the former prioress and her former councilors.—
Elizabeth Campbell,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
21 Apr. 2024
-
Matrix by Lauren Groff Currents of violence and devotion coalesce around Marie de France, a 17-year-old sent to be the new prioress of a 12th-century English abbey.—
Mia Barzilay Freund,
Vogue,
29 Mar. 2024
Noun
-
When the abbess died in 866, she was buried in the abbey church.—
Moira Ritter,
Miami Herald,
22 Feb. 2024
-
That makes the abbess a likely candidate for the author of the inscription and marginal doodles.—
Ron Amadeo,
Ars Technica,
21 Feb. 2023
Noun
-
But for some hundred years, groups of ladies of the night took vows and lived as nuns there, controlling the affairs of their own convent with an iron fist.—
Joelle Rollo-Koster,
The Conversation,
25 Feb. 2025
-
During this period, the residence was handed over to a group of Benedictine nuns of the Diocese of Oria, who turned the estate into an olive farm and dairy.—
Abby Montanez,
Robb Report,
23 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
They’re relentlessly pursued by Ash and her army of murderous monks and also must contend with the most fearsome CGI demonic creatures a mid-budget movie can create.—
Frank Scheck,
The Hollywood Reporter,
5 Mar. 2025
-
Once a guest demanded, and received, a magician; the hotel has the island’s only English-speaking Buddhist monk on speed dial; recently, a guest arrived at the hotel at 10 p.m. and wanted to propose to his girlfriend right away.—
Sangeeta Singh-Kurtz,
Vulture,
4 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Buddhist organizations, whose members are also known to skew older, have been trying to connect with younger people by updating the image of monastics, usually known for their no-nonsense asceticism.—
Koh Ewe,
TIME,
13 May 2024
-
Over the past 2,000 years, Buddhist teachings have encountered distortions and alterations due to mistranslation and misinterpretation of Buddha-dharma by Buddhist patriarchs, eminent monastics, and Buddhist scholars.—
Jon Stojan,
USA TODAY,
25 July 2023
Noun
-
To get in touch with the miraculous Francis, the folkloric Francis, read the Fioretti, or The Little Flowers of St. Francis, a 14th-century collection of tales about the saint and his friars.—
James Parker,
The Atlantic,
10 Jan. 2025
-
She will be expected to support communities including monks, nuns, and friars who live according to specific spiritual rules such as Benedictines and Franciscans.—
Kevin Lynn,
Newsweek,
6 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Just kind of a handful or random observations with nothing that even the most novice player doesn't already know.—
Gene McCaffrey,
The Athletic,
26 Feb. 2025
-
The fights, without a doubt, grabbed the attention of novice fans everywhere, but not everyone was a fan of it.—
Ryan Morik,
Fox News,
18 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
But the fate of the votary is to require and receive a constant renewal of faith.—
Jeff Weiss,
Spin,
21 Aug. 2023
-
Many remember the Cultural Revolution as a time of Red Guard excess—of the people terrorizing the votaries of the party.—
Mary Gallagher,
Foreign Affairs,
20 June 2023
Cite this Entry
“Anchoress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anchoress. Accessed 14 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share