Monk (?), n. [AS. munuc, munec, munc, L. monachus, Gr. &?;, fr. mo`nos alone. Cf. Monachism.]
1. A man who retires
from the ordinary temporal concerns
of the world, and devotes himself to religion; one of a religious community of men inhabiting a monastery, and bound by
vows to a life
of chastity, obedience, and poverty. "A monk out of
his cloister."
Chaucer.
Monks in some respects agree with regulars, as in the substantial vows of religion; but in other respects monks and regulars differ; for that regulars, vows excepted,
are not tied up to so strict a rule
of life as
monks are.
Ayliffe.
2. (Print.) A blotch or spot of ink on a printed page, caused by the ink not being properly distributed.
It is distinguished from a friar, or white spot
caused by a deficiency of ink.
3. A piece of tinder made of agaric, used in firing the
powder hose or train of a mine.
4. (Zoöl.) (a) A South American monkey (Pithecia monachus); also applied to other species, as Cebus xanthocephalus. (b) The European bullfinch.
Monk bat (Zoöl.), a South American and West Indian bat (Molossus nasutus); -- so
called because the males live in communities by themselves. -- Monk bird(Zoöl.), the friar bird. -- Monk seal (Zoöl.), a species of seal (Monachus albiventer) inhabiting the Black Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, and the adjacent parts of the Atlantic. -- Monk's rhubarb (Bot.),
a kind of
dock; -- also called patience (Rumex Patientia).
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