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DictionaryhostelryLodging establishment
noun

hostelry

HAH-stul-ree/ˈhɑːstəlri/

A place where travelers pay to stay overnight.

The small hostelry offers travelers a comfortable place to sleep.

A traveler with a suitcase checks into a small inn: the innkeeper hands her a room key across a compact reception desk, with an open guest-room doorway revealing a neatly made bed.
Etymology
hostelOld Frenchhouse, home, inn
+ryOld Frenchplace associated with

Old French hostel could mean a house or home as well as an inn. The place-forming ending points here to a house providing lodgings for travelers.

In context

Storytime Haven392:04
At eleven o'clock on the following day I found myself installed in the Hotel de Paris, a comfortable hostelry
The Czar's Spy: The Mystery of a Silent Love 🕵️‍♂️💘 | William Le Queux Classic Spy Thriller

More examples

  • We booked two nights at a hostelry near the station.
  • Several hostelries along the coast close for the winter.
  • This family-run hostelry serves breakfast to overnight guests.

Forms

hostelry · hostelries

Similar words

inn
Usually suggests a smaller, traditional place offering lodging and meals.
hotel
A more common term, often suggesting a larger lodging business.