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tonsure |
2 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Tonsure \Ton"sure\, n. [F., fr L. tonsura a shearing, clipping, from tondere tonsum to shear, shave; cf Gr ? to gnaw; perhaps akin to Gr ? to cut, and E. tome.] 1. The act of clipping the hair, or of shaving the crown of the head; also the state of being shorn. 2. (R. C. Ch.) a The first ceremony used for devoting a person to the service of God and the church; the first degree of the clericate given by a bishop, abbot, or cardinal priest, consisting in cutting off the hair from a circular space at the back of the head, with prayers and benedictions; hence entrance or admission into minor orders b The shaven corona, or crown, which priests wear as a mark of their order and of their rank. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: tonsure n 1: the shaved crown of a monk's or priest's head 2: shaving the crown of the head by priests or members of a monastic order v : shave the head of a newly inducted monk
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