priory
noun /ˈpraɪəri/
/ˈpraɪəri/
(plural priories)
- a building where a community of monks or nuns lives, which is smaller and less important than an abbeyTopics Buildingsc2Word OriginMiddle English: from Anglo-Norman French priorie, medieval Latin prioria, from Latin prior ‘elder, superior’, related to prae ‘before’.