Definition of "recluse" in English

adjective

1. Sequestered; secluded, isolated.

   • a recluse monk or hermit

2. Hidden, secret.

noun

1. A person who lives in self-imposed isolation or seclusion from the world, especially for religious purposes; a hermit.

   • The recluse in the fable kept a cat to keep off the rats, and then a cow to feed the cat with milk, and a man to keep the cow and so on. My ambitions also grew like the family of the recluse.

2. (obsolete) The place where a recluse dwells; a place of isolation or seclusion.

3. (US) Ellipsis of recluse spider.

4. See also Thesaurus:recluse

verb

1. (transitive, obsolete) To shut; to seclude.