English Explanatory Dictionary

ornamental hermit

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A person hired to live in a specially built, rustic hermitage on an estate; hired in the 18th and early 19th centuries by wealthy landowners with strict conditions often requiring them to live in solitude, not groom themselves, and dress in a wild, often druidic, fashion; regularly cared for, consulted for advice, or viewed for entertainment.

Word forms

ornamental hermit ornamental hermits

Etymology

From ornamental + hermit

Synonyms

garden hermit
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