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hostelry

[hos-tl-ree]
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noun, plural hos·tel·ries.
  1. an inn or hotel.
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Origin of hostelry

1350–1400; Middle English hostelrye, variant of hostelerie < Middle French. See hostel, -ry
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for hostelry

Historical Examples

  • A "suite" at the Central House, Bayport's one hostelry, tickled him.

    Fair Harbor

    Joseph Crosby Lincoln

  • Nevertheless, I rode back to my hostelry in no pleasant frame of mind.

    The Suitors of Yvonne

    Raphael Sabatini

  • The fellow pointed with his thumb in the direction of the hostelry.

  • But the jolting of the coach had so hardly used Crispin that he had to be carried into the hostelry.

    The Tavern Knight

    Rafael Sabatini

  • He returned to the cosy room of the hostelry to receive the bet he had won.

    Bygone Punishments

    William Andrews

British Dictionary definitions for hostelry

hostelry

noun plural -ries
  1. archaic, or facetious an inn
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for hostelry

n.

late 14c. (as a surname from early 14c.), from Old French hostelerie "house, guest-house; kitchen; hospice, almshouse" (12c., Modern French hôtellerie), from hostel (see host). Lost, then revived 19c.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper