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• hermitage
  hermitage

  noun

  the habitation of a hermit.
• Hermitage
  Hermitage

  noun

  an art museum in St Petersburg, originally a palace built by Catherine the Great

hermitage

American  

[hur-mi-tij, er-mi-tahzh] / ˈhɜr mɪ tɪdʒ, ˌɛr mɪˈtɑʒ /

noun

hermitages plural

1. the habitation of a hermit.

2. any secluded place of residence or habitation; retreat; hideaway.

3. (initial capital letter) a palace in Leningrad built by Catherine II and now used as an art museum.

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hermitage ¹ British  

/ ˈhɜːmɪtɪdʒ /

noun

1. the abode of a hermit

2. any place where a person may live in seclusion; retreat

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Hermitage ² British  

/ ˈhɜːmɪtɪdʒ /

noun

1. an art museum in St Petersburg, originally a palace built by Catherine the Great

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Hermitage ³ British  

/ ˈhɜːmɪtɪdʒ /

noun

1. a full-bodied red or white wine from the Rhône valley at Tain-l'Ermitage, in SE France

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• hermitages
  plural

Etymology

Origin of hermitage

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Old French; see hermit, eremite, -age

Explanation

Your summer cabin deep in the woods where you go to think about how funny life is sometimes? If you want to sound fancy, it could be called a hermitage, a dwelling removed from civilization. The noun hermitage has origins in the French word hermite, meaning “hermit,” a person who lives alone, far from society. Hermitage can describe the place where a hermit lives, or a dwelling occupied by an isolated religious group that prefers solitude. But the word is likely to be used more broadly to describe a secluded or remote dwelling, a place of solitude, where you won’t run into a neighbor while mowing the lawn in the backyard.

Example Sentences

They are now regular visitors to the grand Hermitage Museum, housed in the former palace of the Tsars.

From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026

In 1892, the Finnish Art Society sent her to St. Petersburg, Russia, to paint copies of works in the Hermitage and then, in 1894, to Vienna and Florence to copy old masters.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 3, 2026

Both the archaeologist and the Hermitage insist all their finds remain in Crimea as they are transferred to the Eastern Crimean Museum in Kerch.

From BBC • Dec. 25, 2025

“People come here for silent, self-guided retreats,” said Katee Armstrong, guest ministry specialist at New Camaldoli Hermitage.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 29, 2025

With Jackson family finances ruined and most of the former enslaved community gone, the Hermitage soon fell into disrepair.

From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis