as in abbess
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of prioress
Matrix by Lauren Groff Currents of violence and devotion coalesce around Marie de France, a 17-year-old sent to be the new prioress of a 12th-century English abbey.
—
Mia Barzilay Freund, Vogue, 7 July 2025
In response, the diocese said in a statement that the Holy See has acted toward healing the Arlington Carmel and the nuns in the community and not simply the former prioress and her former councilors.
—Elizabeth Campbell, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Apr. 2024
For the senior members of the order — two successive prioresses and the conflicted but maternal assistant prioress, Mother Marie — the role of self-abnegation is a deep moral mystery, one that takes a lifetime to fully understand.
—Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, 16 Oct. 2022
Sister Maria Christine, prioress of the monastery, said the Dominican order’s goal is to upgrade and expand on the mission that the nuns began nearly 100 years ago: providing a peaceful oasis for silent prayer and contemplation.
—Deborah Netburnstaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2022
Seventeen-year-old Marie de France is cast out of the royal court to be the new prioress of an impoverished abbey in medieval Europe and finds purpose and love in her newfound devotion to the sisters.
—Barbara Vandenburgh, USA TODAY, 11 Dec. 2021
The author, whose previous fiction has probed contemporary American communities, sets this novel in an impoverished twelfth-century English abbey, where the protagonist, Marie, is sent at the age of seventeen to be prioress.
—The New Yorker, 13 Sep. 2021
An embarrassment to the crown, with her ungainly physical presence making for a too-visible testimony to historical indiscretions, she is dispatched by Eleanor of Aquitaine to be the prioress of an abbey in bleakest, dampest England.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 7 Sep. 2021
Siemen is the order's prioress, or leader.
—Laura Ly and Theresa Waldrop, CNN, 30 Jan. 2021
Mia Barzilay Freund, Vogue, 7 July 2025
In response, the diocese said in a statement that the Holy See has acted toward healing the Arlington Carmel and the nuns in the community and not simply the former prioress and her former councilors.
—Elizabeth Campbell, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Apr. 2024
For the senior members of the order — two successive prioresses and the conflicted but maternal assistant prioress, Mother Marie — the role of self-abnegation is a deep moral mystery, one that takes a lifetime to fully understand.
—Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, 16 Oct. 2022
Sister Maria Christine, prioress of the monastery, said the Dominican order’s goal is to upgrade and expand on the mission that the nuns began nearly 100 years ago: providing a peaceful oasis for silent prayer and contemplation.
—Deborah Netburnstaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2022
Seventeen-year-old Marie de France is cast out of the royal court to be the new prioress of an impoverished abbey in medieval Europe and finds purpose and love in her newfound devotion to the sisters.
—Barbara Vandenburgh, USA TODAY, 11 Dec. 2021
The author, whose previous fiction has probed contemporary American communities, sets this novel in an impoverished twelfth-century English abbey, where the protagonist, Marie, is sent at the age of seventeen to be prioress.
—The New Yorker, 13 Sep. 2021
An embarrassment to the crown, with her ungainly physical presence making for a too-visible testimony to historical indiscretions, she is dispatched by Eleanor of Aquitaine to be the prioress of an abbey in bleakest, dampest England.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 7 Sep. 2021
Siemen is the order's prioress, or leader.
—Laura Ly and Theresa Waldrop, CNN, 30 Jan. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prioress
Noun
-
Hildegard was a Catholic abbess of the Benedictine Order.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Now, thanks to a greater emphasis on women’s education in recent years, Tibetan Buddhist nuns are increasingly becoming teachers and abbesses.—
Darcie Price-Wallace,
The Conversation,
26 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
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
Noun
-
Alfonso’s nun in her Balenciaga stared out at me dolled up in mine.—
Han Ong,
New Yorker,
15 Mar. 2026
-
But what could a nun in a tenement do?—
Sheila Coronel,
The Atlantic,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The cake, which is similar to the classic pound, is easy for a novice baker to whip up.—
Nellah Bailey McGough,
Southern Living,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Even a relatively novice collector probably has an inkling that the Rolex Daytona, the Cartier Crash, or the Porsche 911 are highly valued, but what’s next?—
Paige Reddinger,
Robb Report,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
As a young religious, Bishop-elect Lombardo did missionary work in Bolivia and Honduras.—
Laura Rodríguez Presa,
chicagotribune.com,
11 Sep. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Prioress.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prioress. Accessed 20 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
