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plural abbeys
1
a
: a monastery ruled by an abbot
b
: a convent ruled by an abbess
2
: an abbey church
Examples of abbey in a Sentence
the monks in the abbey grow all their own vegetables
Recent Examples on the Web
Situating them in a real abbey, Rabelais marshaled them as evidence of hypocrisy.
—Jonathon Keats, Forbes, 30 Dec. 2024
The Princess of Wales also sent the Scouts home from the fourth iteration of her Together at Christmas carol service home with a little something special — Christmas trees that were brought in to decorate the ancient abbey.
—Janine Henni, People.com, 23 Dec. 2024
The abbey's cellars, known as 'crayères,' are ancient chalk quarries dating back to the Gallo-Roman era.
—Lauren Mowery, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024
Since then, he’s injected his flair into Venetian jewels like Abbazia San Gregorio, a former Benedictine abbey and the home of Diane von Furstenburg in Palazzo Brandolini-Giustinian.
—Sofia Celeste, WWD, 21 Nov. 2024
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Word History
Etymology
Middle English abbeye, abbay, borrowed from Anglo-French abeie, abbaye, borrowed from Medieval Latin abbātia "abbacy, abbey," from Late Latin abbāt-, abbās abbot + Latin -ia -y entry 2
First Known Use
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Time Traveler
The first known use of abbey was
in the 14th century
Dictionary Entries Near abbey
Cite this Entry
“Abbey.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/abbey. Accessed 4 Jan. 2025.
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More from Merriam-Webster on abbey
Nglish: Translation of abbey for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of abbey for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about abbey
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