tonsure: Meaning and Definition of

ton•sure

Pronunciation: (ton'shur), [key]
— n., v., -sured, -sur•ing.
—n.
  1. the act of cutting the hair or shaving the head.
  2. the shaving of the head or of some part of it as a religious practice or rite, esp. in preparation for entering the priesthood or a monastic order.
  3. the part of a cleric's head, usually the crown, left bare by shaving the hair.
  4. the state of being shorn.
—v.t.
  1. to confer the ecclesiastical tonsure upon.
  2. to subject to tonsure.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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