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Added 9 October 2026

cloister

/ˈklɔɪstə/ noun

Latin root: claustrum Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about cloister at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Residence that is a place of religious seclusion (such as a monastery).
A courtyard with covered walks (as in religious institutions).

verb

Surround with a cloister, as of a garden.
Surround with a cloister.
cloister the garden
Seclude from the world in or as if in a cloister.
She cloistered herself in the office

Origin

Recorded since about 1300 as Middle English cloistre, borrowed from Old French cloistre, clostre, or via Old English clauster, both from Medieval Latin claustrum (“portion of monastery closed off to laity”), from Latin claustrum (“place shut in, bar, bolt, enclosure”), a derivation of the past participle of claudere (“to close”). Doublet of claustrum.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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