as in hermit
a person who lives away from others many Christian saints were anchorites who removed themselves from the world to focus on their spirituality

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples 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 anchorite The original Anthology Film Archives, on Lafayette Street in Manhattan, was designed with high black partitions between each seat, so that viewers could wall themselves in to the screen like anchorites. Rachel Cusk, Harper's Magazine, 9 Sep. 2023 Why were anchorites such as Simeon Stylites — who lived atop a pillar — regularly consulted on all sorts of practical problems? Michael Dirda, Washington Post, 9 June 2023 Perhaps our lives now more closely resemble ancient anchorites, religious recluses who lived alone in rooms adjoining churches, said Cathleen Kaveny, a Catholic theologian at Boston College. Daniel Burke, CNN, 5 Apr. 2020 In other instances, anchorites became wise people to visit and from whom to seek council. Los Angeles Times, 12 Sep. 2019 But there are certainly similarities between the anchorite and the handmaid. Annie Sutherland, Quartzy, 13 June 2019

Podcast

Thesaurus Entries Near anchorite

Cite this Entry

“Anchorite.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anchorite. Accessed 18 Dec. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on anchorite

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!