The Difference Between a Coenobium and a Monastery

Many people speak of monasteries and coenobia without distinction, yet there is this difference. Monastery is the name of the dwelling and means nothing more than the place, that is, the house of monks, while coenobium describes the character of the life and its system. A monastery may be the dwelling of a single monk, but a coenobium can be spoken of only where a united community of many men lives together. Yet the places where groups of Sarabaites live are also called monasteries.