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).