shrāmanerī ［沙弥尼］ (; Pali sāmanerī;  shami-ni): A female novice in the Buddhist Order who has left home, shaved her head, and taken a vow to observe the ten precepts. The male equivalent is shrāmanera. Shrāmanerī refers to a novice from age seven to nineteen before she becomes a full-fledged nun ( bhikshunī), i.e., an observer of all the precepts specified for nuns. Among shrāmanerī, those of ages eighteen and nineteen are called shikshamānā; they engage in the rigorous final preparation for nunhood during those two years.