hermit

American  

[hur-mit] / ˈhɜr mɪt /

noun

1. a person who has withdrawn to a solitary place for a life of religious seclusion.

   Synonyms:

   cenobite, anchorite, monastic, eremite

2. any person living in seclusion; recluse.

3. Zoology. an animal of solitary habits.

4. Ornithology. any of numerous hummingbirds of the genera Glaucis and Phaethornis, having curved bills and dull-colored rather than iridescent plumage.

5. a spiced molasses cookie often containing raisins or nuts.

6. Obsolete. a beadsman.

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hermit British  

/ ˈhɜːmɪt /

noun

1. one of the early Christian recluses

2. any person living in solitude

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Other Word Forms

• hermit-like adjective
• hermitic adjective
• hermitical adjective
• hermitically adverb
• hermitish adjective
• hermitlike adjective
• hermitry noun
• hermitship noun
• unhermitic adjective
• unhermitical adjective
• unhermitically adverb

Etymology

Origin of hermit

1175–1225; Middle English ermite, hermite, heremite < Old French < Late Latin erēmīta < Greek erēmītḗs living in a desert, equivalent to erḗm ( ia ) desert (derivative of erêmos desolate) + -ītēs -ite ¹

Explanation

You hear about hermits more often than you meet one, and that’s because a hermit is someone who likes to be alone, far from people, sometimes because of their religious beliefs or maybe because they simply want some privacy. Hermits like living solo, alone in the woods, up in a mountain, or sometimes they live in a city without hardly ever leaving their apartment. The root of the word is the Greek erēmos, meaning “solitary.” A life of solitude isn’t for everyone, but a hermit chooses it for any number of reasons. For example, being able to honor their religious beliefs more fully or hating all of humanity are two possible motivations to become a hermit.

Example Sentences

Wildlife enthusiast Fred, who had just turned six at the time of filming in the summer and autumn of 2024, enjoyed spotting scorpions, snakes, monkeys, monitor lizards, eagles, hermit crabs, geckos and flying lemurs.

From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026

The Order of the Hermits of St Augustine was established in 1256 when the papacy объединed several hermit groups from central Italy into a single mendicant order.

From Science Daily • Feb. 2, 2026

And there's a deep-sea hermit crab, living not inside a shell, but a sea star the team can't immediately identify.

From Barron's • Jan. 26, 2026

Though Robert may be classified as a hermit, his story still unfolds in phases where he develops meaningful connections.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 5, 2025

I’m on the social studies side because that’s the class I would usually have now, but at least I can see the tanks of hermit crabs on the science side.

From "The Benefits of Being an Octopus" by Ann Braden

Related Words

• recluse