variants
or ancress
as in prioress
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Recent Examples of anchoress
In the medieval church, women’s roles were limited – usually some form of enclosure and celibacy, such as becoming an anchoress walled up alone for life, or a nun in a classic convent.
—
Joelle Rollo-Koster,
The Conversation,
25 Feb. 2025
Louise, a former anchoress, is her humble, tyrannical maid.
—
Hervé Guibert,
Harper's Magazine,
2 Nov. 2024
Some of the spotlighted individuals, like St. Catherine of Siena and English anchoress Julian of Norwich, were celebrated in their day as visionaries, while others, including Kempe and Joan of Arc, were persecuted as heretics.
—
Meilan Solly,
Smithsonian Magazine,
24 Oct. 2024
Joelle Rollo-Koster,
The Conversation,
25 Feb. 2025
Louise, a former anchoress, is her humble, tyrannical maid.
—
Hervé Guibert,
Harper's Magazine,
2 Nov. 2024
Some of the spotlighted individuals, like St. Catherine of Siena and English anchoress Julian of Norwich, were celebrated in their day as visionaries, while others, including Kempe and Joan of Arc, were persecuted as heretics.
—
Meilan Solly,
Smithsonian Magazine,
24 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anchoress
Noun
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The slow-burn thriller is partially based on a 17th century ballad in which the heroic outlaw’s cousin, a malevolent prioress, bleeds the older, ailing Robin to death under the guise of the ancient medical treatment known as bloodletting.
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After Robin is gravely injured, he is taken in by the sage prioress Brigid (Jodie Comer), who nurses him back to health at an island convent.
Noun
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Hildegard was a Catholic abbess of the Benedictine Order.
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Now, thanks to a greater emphasis on women’s education in recent years, Tibetan Buddhist nuns are increasingly becoming teachers and abbesses.
Noun
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As a young religious, Bishop-elect Lombardo did missionary work in Bolivia and Honduras.
Noun
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In Disclosure Day, Jane’s worrying is curious, coming from someone who meant to become a nun.
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And these encouraging words that my nun gave me actually started the trajectory of my entire life.
Noun
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In the 18th century, an Italian monk, Father Antonio Piaggio, invented a device to gently unroll the carbonized papyrus.
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The cordovan line revisited the brand’s shoemaking heritage with models that included derby shoes, loafers, monk straps and Chelsea boots.
Noun
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These people who see the theater as almost a monastic calling something of a higher order, and they’re brilliantly educated and funny.
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As the numbers of women at the highest echelons of learning continue to grow, women will likewise expand their ability to take leadership roles in their monastic and lay communities – helping to improve other nuns’ education and protecting Tibetan culture in the process.
Noun
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Fra Giovanni da Pian del Carpine, who was a medieval Italian Franciscan friar and explorer in 1244 went to Mongolia [as a papal ambassador].
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The storied residence was first commissioned in 1712 by Anna Gravina, Princess of Gravina and Valguarnera, and it's also attributed to Dominican friar and architect Tommaso Maria Napoli.
Noun
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The five-part docuseries, directed by Brian Knappenberger with Tom Hanks as executive producer, offers novice history buffs an extensive look into the establishment of American democracy.
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To create something wholly new, the narrative team looked back to other games with a low barrier to entry, particularly early 2000s Nintendo consoles that invited novices to join the fold.
Cite this Entry
“Anchoress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anchoress. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
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