Mendicant \Men"di*cant\, a. [L. mendicans, -antis, p. pr. of
mendicare to beg, fr. mendicus beggar, indigent.]
Practicing beggary; begging; living on alms; as, mendicant
friars.
{Mendicant orders} (R. C. Ch.), certain monastic orders which
are forbidden to acquire landed property and are required
to be supported by alms, esp. the Franciscans, the
Dominicans, the Carmelites, and the Augustinians.