CONCLAVE, noun [Latin , an inner room; a key, or from the same root, to make fast.] 1. A private apartment, particularly the room in which the Cardinals of the Romish church meet in privacy, for the eletion of a Pope. It consists of a range of small cells or apartments, standing in a line along the galleries and hall of the Vatican. 2. The assembly or meeting of the Cardinals, shut up for the election of a Pope. 3. A private meeting; a close assembly.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI