cloister

American  

[kloi-ster] / ˈklɔɪ stər /

noun

1. a covered walk, especially in a religious institution, having an open arcade or colonnade usually opening onto a courtyard.

2. a courtyard, especially in a religious institution, bordered with such walks.

3. a place of religious seclusion, as a monastery or convent.

   Synonyms:

   priory, abbey

4. any quiet, secluded place.

5. life in a monastery or convent.

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verb (used with object)

1. to confine in a monastery or convent.

2. to confine in retirement; seclude.

3. to furnish with a cloister or covered walk.

4. to convert into a monastery or convent.

cloister British  

/ ˈklɔɪstə /

noun

1. a covered walk, usually around a quadrangle in a religious institution, having an open arcade or colonnade on the inside and a wall on the outside

2. (sometimes plural) a place of religious seclusion, such as a monastery

3. life in a monastery or convent

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verb

1. (tr) to confine or seclude in or as if in a monastery

Other Word Forms

• cloister-like adjective
• cloisterless adjective
• cloisterlike adjective

Etymology

Origin of cloister

1250–1300; Middle English cloistre < Anglo-French, Old French, blend of cloison partition ( cloisonné ) and clostre (< Latin claustrum barrier ( Late Latin: enclosed place); claustrum )

Example Sentences

She picked Gita Kaur, whose grandmother had kept Gita virtually cloistered in the family house in Nairobi until she was 19.

From The Wall Street Journal

There the nun discovers her own inner sleuth, and unexpectedly finds joy in life outside the cloister.

From The Wall Street Journal

Even so, she didn’t live in a cloister.

From The Wall Street Journal

The Gothic arches in the creature's cell are from the vaulted arches of the cloisters at the University of Glasgow.

From BBC

A vast blaze has torn through the historic Bernaga Monastery in northern Italy, the Italian fire service said Sunday, forcing the evacuation of 22 cloistered nuns.

From Barron's

Related Words

• nunnery