A man who retires from the ordinary temporal concerns of the world, and devotes himself to religion; one of a religious community of men inhabiting a monastery, and bound by vows to a life of chastity, obedience, and poverty.
Monks in some respects agree with regulars, as in the substantial vows of religion; but in other respects monks and regulars differ; for that regulars, vows excepted, are not tied up to so strict a rule of life as monks are.
A blotch or spot of ink on a printed page, caused by the ink not being properly distributed. It is distinguished from a friar, or white spot caused by a deficiency of ink. (Print.)
A piece of tinder made of agaric, used in firing the powder hose or train of a mine.
A South American monkey (Pithecia monachus); also applied to other species, as Cebus xanthocephalus. (Zool.)
Phrases & Compounds
Monk bat
a South American and West Indian bat (Molossus nasutus); -- so called because the males live in communities by themselves.
Monk bird
the friar bird.
Monk seal
a species of seal (Monachus albiventer) inhabiting the Black Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, and the adjacent parts of the Atlantic.
Monk's rhubarb
a kind of dock; -- also called patience (Rumex Patientia).