tonsure
tonsure
Definition
ton·sure (tän′s̸hər)
noun
- a clipping off or shaving off of part or all of the hair of the head, done esp. formerly as a signal of entrance into the clerical or monastic state
- the head area so clipped or shaved
Etymology: ME < MFr < L tonsura < tonsus: see tonsorial
transitive verb -·sured, -·sur·ing
to clip or shave the head hair of for such a purpose
tonsure
Usage Examples
Possessives
- monk: Two or three stunted bushes were boxed into a small strip of grass that bounded it like a monk's tonsure.
- pregnancy: The ' pregnancy ' tonsure of two girls shows that they are in their second phase.
Converse of object
- receive: He had received tonsure but was only in his fifteenth year; he was instituted to the rectory in 1308 while still a minor.
Browse dictionary entries near tonsure
- tonsorial
- tonsillotomy
- tonsillitis
- tonsillectomy
- tonsil
- tonometer
- tonneau
- tonne
- tonnage
- Tonle Sap
