MON'ASTERY,noun [Low Latin monasterium; Gr. from sole, separate.] A house of religious retirement, or of seclusion from ordinary temporal concerns, whether an abbey, a priory or a nunnery. The word is usually applied to the houses of monks, mendicant friars and nuns.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI