monk

Pronunciation

• IPA: /mʌŋk/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English munk, inherited from Old English munuc,^[2][3][4][5] borrowed from Vulgar Latin *monicus, taken early into Germanic as Proto-Germanic *muniko-, the source also of Old Frisian munek, Middle Dutch monic and Old High German munih (modern German Mönch).^[3][4] The Vulgar Latin word is a form of Late Latin monachus (“monk, originally a religious hermit”),^[2][3][4] from Ancient Greek μοναχός (monakhós, “monk”), in classical Greek an adjective meaning solitary,^[2][3][4] from μόνος (mónos, “alone”),^[2][3][4] from Proto-Indo-European *men- (“small, isolated”).^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

A member of a religious brotherhood living apart: Old English munuc, before 899, in Alfred's translation of Bede;^[2][6] it was used of women too.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The first monks of the Church were men who withdrew from the world to meditate and practise religion in solitude,^[3] and the Greek word was early applied to monks living in communities.^[4] Black, white and grey monks, named for the colour of their habits, are from about 1290.^[6] Animals whose form suggests a monk's costume were given the name from 1789,^[6] and in 1843 monk was colloquial for monkey.^[6] Monkish, monkery and monkshood are from the 16th century.^[4]

Timeline

• before 899 – munuc, a monk.^[2]
• before 1121 – munec.^[2]
• before 1300 – the spelling monk.^[2]
• 16th century – monkish, monkshood.^[4]
• 1843 – monk, a monkey.^[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A man who belongs to a religious brotherhood living in a monastery, bound by vows such as poverty, chastity and obedience.
2. A fancy pigeon with a bald head and often large feathered feet.

Word family

• monkery
• monkish
• monkshood
• monk parakeet
• monk seal

Related words

• monastery
• monastic
• monasticism
• monarch
• mono-
• nun

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e f g h Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press