Definitions for: Monk


[n] a male religious living in a cloister and devoting himself to contemplation and prayer and work
[n] United States jazz pianist who was one of the founders of the bebop style (1917-1982)



Webster (1913) Definition: 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).

Synonyms: monastic, Thelonious Monk, Thelonious Sphere Monk

See Also: Bacon, Benedict, Brother, Cistercian, Gregor Mendel, jazz musician, jazzman, Johann Mendel, Mendel, religious, Roger Bacon, Saint Benedict, St Benedict, Trappist

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