lay brother

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

lay′ broth′er, 

1. Religion a man who has taken religious vows and habit but is employed by his order chiefly in manual labor.

• 1670–80

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

lay brother noun

1. a man who has taken the vows of a religious order but is not ordained and not bound to divine office