Definition

1. Noun:

   • The act or ceremony of shaving the crown of the head: This refers specifically to the ritual shaving of the top of the head, traditionally performed upon someone entering a religious order as a priest or monk.
   • The bare, shaved patch on the top of the head: This is the resulting circular area of the scalp from which the hair has been shaved, typically associated with monks, priests, and other religious figures.

2. Verb:

   • To shave the crown of the head of (someone): This action is performed as part of a religious rite, especially during the initiation of a monk or priest.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:

  • The young novice received his tonsure in a solemn ceremony.
  • The monk's tonsure was clearly visible beneath his hood.

• Verb:

  • The abbot will tonsure the new postulants tomorrow.
  • He was tonsured upon taking his final vows.

Advanced Usage

• "To receive the tonsure": to undergo the ceremony of having one's head shaved as part of entering religious life.

  • In the medieval period, many young men received the tonsure as the first step toward a clerical career.

• "The clerical tonsure": refers to the specific style or practice of shaving the head within a particular Christian tradition (e.g., Roman, Eastern, Celtic).

  • The Roman tonsure involved shaving the crown, while the Celtic tonsure was more extensive.

Variants and Related Words

• Tonsured (adj): having a tonsure; describing someone whose head has been shaved in this manner.
  • The tonsured monks moved silently through the cloister.

Synonyms

• Shaving (n): the act of cutting off hair with a razor. (Note: This is a general term, while "tonsure" is specifically religious/ceremonial.)
• Crown (n): when used to refer to the shaved part of the head. (e.g., the shaven crown)

Related Phrases

• "To take the tonsure": an idiomatic phrase meaning to become a monk or cleric by undergoing the ceremony.
  • He decided to leave his worldly possessions behind and take the tonsure.

Noun

1. shaving the crown of the head by priests or members of a monastic order
2. the shaved crown of a monk's or priest's head

Verb

1. shave the head of a newly inducted monk