Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer (e.g. an oratory) as well as the domestic quarters and workplace(s) of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone (hermits).
The earliest extant use of the term monastērion is by the first century AD Jewish philosopher Philo (On The Contemplative Life, ch. III).
Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only a hermit, or in the case of communities anything from a single building housing only a one senior and two or three junior monks or nuns, to vast complexes and estates housing tens or hundreds.
In English usage, the term "monastery" is generally used to denote the buildings of a community of monks, while "convent" tends to be used for the buildings accommodating female monastics (nuns). The term "nunnery" for the latter is outmoded. Various religions may use these terms in more specific ways.
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