Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The convent in which the mother superior of a religious community lives.
  • noun The original convent of a religious community.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The monastery from which the other 'houses' of a religious order or congregation were (directly or indirectly) founded, often eponymous.
  • noun The convent which is the seat (and often the above original foundation) of the superior of an order or congregation, and/or on which lower ranking houses (such as priories under an abbot) depend.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

mother + house

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