Priory

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈpɹaɪəɹ.i/

Definitions

1. A religious building or community led by a prior or prioress, often smaller than an abbey
2. A monastery or convent under the authority of a prior or prioress, serving as a place for religious life and worship
3. An establishment for monks or nuns managed by a prior or prioress, typically functioning as a center of spiritual practice

Etymology: "Priory" comes to English from Anglo-Norman "priorie", the French-influenced language spoken by the Norman ruling class after 1066. The word is built on "prior", a title for the head of a religious house, which itself descends from Latin "prior", meaning "earlier" or "former", the comparative of "prae" ("before"). The same comparative sense appears in English "prior" as in "prior notice", so the monastic title and the everyday word share a root meaning of being first or ahead. The suffix "-y" in "priory" marks the place or community governed by a prior, in the same way "abbey" names the community headed by an abbot. A priory was typically a smaller religious house than an abbey, and it was overseen by a prior rather than an abbot, which is why the two names track the rank of the head. Many English priories were later dissolved in the sixteenth century, and some survive today only as place names or ruined walls.

Synonyms: monastery, convent, abbey, cloister, religious house

Antonyms: secular place, worldly place, lay community, non-religious site, public area