n. A dining-hall especially in an institution such as a college or monastery.
the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English
n. A room for refreshment; originally, a dining hall in monasteries or convents.
The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
n. A room of refreshment; an eating-room; specifically, a hall or apartment in a convent, monastery, or seminary where the meals are eaten. Compare fraiter.
WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
n. a communal dining-hall (usually in a monastery)
Word Usage
"But here is a Guydo -- the frame alone is worth pounds -- which any lady might be proud to hang up -- a suitable thing for what we call a refectory in a charitable institution, if any gentleman of the Corporation wished to show his munifi cence."