Meanings
minster1
plural minsters
- A monastic church.
[F]urther south in Kent, there was St. Mildred, whose mother, in 670, founded the minster that still stands there in good nick, with nine nuns who are an ever-present help in trouble to all religions and none.
2014 July 20, Jane Gardam, “Give us a bishop in high heels [print version: “Give us a high-heeled bishop”, International New York Times, 22 July 2014, page 11]”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 21 Jul 2014
Minster2
- A large village in Minster-on-Sea parish, on the Isle of Sheppey, Swale borough, Kent, England (OS grid ref TQ9573).
- A village and civil parish in Thanet district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR3164).
- A former civil parish in Cornwall, England, now part of Forrabury and Minster.
- A surname.
Origin
- Ancient Greekμοναστήριον“monastery; solitary dwelling”
- Latinmonastērium“monastery”
- Old Englishmynster
- Middle Englishmynster
- Englishminster
From Middle English mynster (see mynisterie), from Old English mynster, from Latin monastērium (“monastery”), from Ancient Greek μοναστήριον (monastḗrion, “monastery; solitary dwelling”). Doublet of monastery.
More words from Middle English, Old English, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian манастирска черква
- манастирска черква (manastirska čerkva)monastic church
French moutier
- moutiermonastic church
German Münster
- Münstermonastic church
Russian монасты́рская це́рковь
- монасты́рская це́рковь (monastýrskaja cérkovʹ)monastic church
Cite this entry
minster. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/minster
“minster.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/minster. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “minster,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/minster.
Source: minster on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.