anchorite
[ ang-kuh-rahyt ]
/ ˈæŋ kəˌraɪt /
noun
a person who has retired to a solitary place for a life of religious seclusion; hermit.
Nearby words
anchorage, anchoress, anchoret, anchoretic, anchorette, anchorite, anchoritic, anchoritism, anchorman, anchorperson, anchors
Also anchoret.
Origin of anchorite
1400–50; late Middle English anc(h)orite, conflation of Middle English ancre (Old English ancra, ancer) and Old French anacorite or Medieval Latin anachōrīta < Late Greek anachōrētḗs, equivalent to Greek anachōrē-, stem of anachōreîn to withdraw (ana- ana- + chōreîn to give way, verbal derivative of chôros space) + -tēs agent suffix; Old English forms < Old Irish *ancharae < Late Latin anachōrēta < Late Greek
Related formsan·cho·rit·ic [ang-kuh-rit-ik] /ˌæŋ kəˈrɪt ɪk/, adjectivean·cho·rit·i·cal·ly, adverban·cho·rit·ism [ang-kuh-rahy-tiz-uh m] /ˈæŋ kə raɪˌtɪz əm/, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for anchorite
British Dictionary definitions for anchorite
anchorite
/ (ˈæŋkəˌraɪt) /
noun
a person who lives in seclusion, esp a religious recluse; hermit
Derived Formsanchoress, fem n
Word Origin for anchorite
C15: from Medieval Latin anchorīta, from Late Latin anachōrēta, from Greek anakhōrētēs, from anakhōrein to retire, withdraw, from khōra a space
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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Word Origin and History for anchorite
anchorite
mid-15c., "hermit (especially those of the Eastern deserts), recluse, one who withdraws from the world for religious reasons," from Medieval Latin anchorita, from Greek anakhoretes, literally "one who has retired," agent noun from anakhorein "to retreat, go back, retire," from ana- "back" (see ana-) + khorein "withdraw, give place," from khoros "place, space, free space, room." Replaced Old English ancer, from Late Latin anchoreta.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper