hermitage

American  

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

noun

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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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

The manuscript opens with the life of Giovanni of Florence, who built the Augustinian hermitage of Santa Lucia in Larniano with help from local farmers.

From Science Daily • Feb. 2, 2026

Unless somebody at Google HQ has just made a fix, Google Maps will tell you incorrectly that the hermitage and lodge are beyond the road closure.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 29, 2025

The south peak of Sceilg Mhichíl is 218m high and was used as a hermitage by monks, with the 183m-high lower peak containing the main monastic site.

From BBC • Aug. 13, 2022

She came to Solas Bhride this year for a weeklong stay in its hermitage.

From New York Times • Mar. 11, 2022

He had thought, of course, of going back to Aravis and Bree and Hwin at the hermitage, but he couldn't because by now he had not the least idea of the direction.

From "The Horse and His Boy" by C.S. Lewis