Friar

Friar (Lat. frater, Fr. frere, brother), a term common to monks of all kinds, founded on the supposition that there is a brotherhood between the persons of the same monastery. It is especially applied to members of the four mendicant orders, viz.

1. Franciscans, Minorites, or Gray Friars; 2. Augustines; 3. Dominicans, or Black Friars; 4. Carmelites, or White Friars.

In a more restricted sense, the word means a monk who is not a priest: those in orders are generally denominated father.