Definition

Noun: 1. A monastery of the Carthusian order: A "charterhouse" is a specific type of monastery belonging to the Carthusian monks, a Roman Catholic religious order known for its strict and contemplative way of life. The name originates from the first monastery of this order, the Grande Chartreuse in France. 2. (Capitalized, proper noun) A specific institution or school: When capitalized, "Charterhouse" often refers to a specific, famous institution, most notably Charterhouse School in England, a prestigious independent boarding school originally founded on the site of a Carthusian monastery.

Examples of Usage

• Noun (monastery):
  • The ruins of the old charterhouse can still be seen on the hillside.
  • He spent a year in silence at a charterhouse in the Alps.
• Noun (proper noun, institution):
  • He was educated at Charterhouse before attending Oxford.
  • The Charterhouse in London is a historic complex that now provides almshouses.

Advanced Usage

• Historical/Literary Context: The term is used in historical and religious texts to denote the specific architectural and communal structures of the Carthusian order, which typically consist of individual hermitages (cells) arranged around a cloister.

Variants and Related Words

• Carthusian (noun/adjective): A member of the monastic order to which a charterhouse belongs, or something relating to that order.
  • The Carthusian monks follow a life of solitude and prayer.
• Grande Chartreuse (proper noun): The mother house of the Carthusian order in France, from which the English word "charterhouse" is derived.

Synonyms

• Monastery (general term for a community of monks).
• Cloister (a convent or monastery, or the secluded life within one).
• Abbey (a monastery or convent under the supervision of an abbot or abbess).

Related Phrases

• The Charterhouse of Parma: The title of a famous 19th-century novel by Stendhal, which uses the term in its historical, monastic sense.

Noun

1. a Carthusian monastery