See Also: hermit(medicine)
hermit(dictionary)
hermit(encyclopedia)
hermit(dictionary)
Peter the Hermit(encyclopedia)
hermit crab(encyclopedia)
hermit crab(dictionary)
Hermit Bars(recipes)

hermit (iou)



hermit noun. , heremite. ME.
[Old French (h)ermite, eremite (mod. ermite) or late Latin eremita (medieval Latin her-) from Greek eremites from eremia desert, from eremos solitary, deserted.]
A person (esp. a man) who from religious motives has retired into solitary life; esp. an early Christian recluse. ME.
H. Maundrell Hermits retiring hither for Penance and Mortification.
b. A person who falsely claims to be a recluse; a beggar. obsolete exc. Hist. LME.
c. A beadsman. L16-L17.
Shakespeare Titus Andronicus As perfect As begging hermits in their holy prayers.
A member of any of various monastic orders. LME.
A person who lives in solitude or shuns human society from any motive; an animal, esp. a sheep, of solitary habit. M17.
G. Gorer The old and poor..choose their own company; and these hermits are represented in every category. D. Prater He was by no means a hermit, and went from time to time into town.
Comb.: hermit crab any soft-bodied decapod crustacean of the family Paguridae, members of which occupy cast-off mollusc shells as protection for their hind parts; hermit ibis = WALDRAPP; hermit thrush a migratory N. American thrush, Catharus guttatus.
hermitess noun a female hermit M17.
hermithood noun E20.
hermitish adjective resembling or befitting a hermit E17.
hermitism noun the state of being a hermit; the hermitic life: L19.
hermitress noun = hermitess E17-E19.
hermitry noun the mode of life of a hermit L19.
hermitship noun E19.