laboratory

American  

[lab-ruh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee, lab-er-uh-, luh-bor-uh-tuh-ree, -uh-tree] / ˈlæb rəˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i, ˈlæb ər ə-, ləˈbɒr ə tə ri, -ə tri /

noun

laboratories plural

1. a building, part of a building, or other place equipped to conduct scientific experiments, tests, investigations, etc., or to manufacture chemicals, medicines, or the like.

2. any place, situation, set of conditions, or the like, conducive to experimentation, investigation, observation, etc.; anything suggestive of a scientific laboratory.

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adjective

1. serving a function in a laboratory.

2. relating to techniques of work in a laboratory.

   laboratory methods; laboratory research.

laboratory British  

/ -trɪ, ləˈbɒrətərɪ, ˈlæbrəˌtɔːrɪ /

noun

1. 1. a building or room equipped for conducting scientific research or for teaching practical science

   2. ( as modifier )

      laboratory equipment

2. a place where chemicals or medicines are manufactured

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• laboratorially
  adverb
• laboratorial
  adjective
• interlaboratory
  adjective
• laboratorian
  noun

Inflected Forms

noun

• laboratories
  plural

Etymology

Origin of laboratory

1595–1605; < Medieval Latin labōrātōrium workshop, equivalent to Latin labōrā ( re ) to labor + -tōrium -tory ²

Explanation

A laboratory is a place where experiments happen, usually scientific experiments involving chemicals and lab coats, but there are creative and athletic laboratories too, where people experiment with writing and footballs. When you think of a laboratory, you might see men and women wearing face masks pouring colorful liquids into test tubes, and you’d be correct. Any place that is a testing ground for new ideas is a laboratory, like a class full of people thinking up new ways to make paper airplanes. The Latin verb laborare means “to labor,” so remember that a laboratory is a place of hard work: you can’t spell laboratory without labor in it.

Example Sentences

Melissa Casias, an administrative assistant at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, was reported missing last June.

From BBC • Jun. 2, 2026

In 2012, researchers at the Wisconsin Plasma Physics Laboratory observed magnetic field behavior that existing theories could not explain.

From Science Daily • May 26, 2026

The contract for management and operation of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory will be opened up to a competitive bidding process for the first time in its history, the space agency announced on Friday.

From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026

Kinsella noted that the company is working on a larger program with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory that aims to fly the first-ever quantum sensor for measuring Earth’s gravitational field in orbit.

From Barron's • May 20, 2026

The Brookhaven National Laboratory was conceived as a powerful regional counterweight to Berkeley.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

Related Words

• lab
• workshop