refuge
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
-
shelter or protection, as from the weather or danger
-
any place, person, action, or thing that offers or appears to offer protection, help, or relief
accused of incompetence, he took refuge in lying
-
another name for traffic island
verb
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of refuge
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin refugium, from refug(ere) “to turn and flee, run away” ( re- re- + fugere “to flee”; see fugitive) + -ium -ium
Explanation
To take refuge is to find a safe place. You might take refuge under a bridge in a hail storm, or in a basement during a tornado. Refuge comes from a French word meaning "to flee," and, in most cases, a refuge is a place to flee to in order to get away from people or places that are unsafe. A refuge is a safe place, such as a building or even another country, as in "they sought refuge from the war by leaving their homeland," or it is a simple, personal place of comfort — like a friend's couch.
Vocabulary lists containing refuge
The Star-Spangled Banner
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Persepolis
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Ford said a total of 10 communities have had to evacuate, with many now seeking refuge in southern Ontario cities.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
Investors are finding refuge in dowdier sectors such as consumer staples.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
People could be seen taking refuge near the windows and on the roof of the building, while the blaze raged in the lower floors.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
In “God Knows Where I Am,” Linda Bishop, diagnosed variously as having “bipolar disorder with psychosis” or schizoaffective disorder, drifts “between shelters, hospitals, and jail” before finding refuge in a deserted farmhouse.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
Rather than seek refuge from the cold inside the White House, the women paced back and forth on wooden planks to get their feet off the icy-cold sidewalks.
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
Mobile home parks in Carson are among the last refuges of affordable housing for many residents.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
Scientists say the discovery strengthens the idea that cemeteries can act as important refuges for biodiversity.
From Science Daily ● May 28, 2026
Tehran's many parks, usually green lungs in a metropolis often choked by pollution, have become refuges since the fighting began.
From Barron's ● Apr. 2, 2026
Instead of a continuous hard shoulder, there are refuges every mile.
From BBC ● Feb. 18, 2026
These particular refuges occupy critical positions in the conservation of western waterfowl.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
“People are homeless, they have been refuged to the mountains.”
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 21, 2022
Himself I refuged and his train relieved, 'Tis true, but am I sure to be received?
From Heathen Mythology by Various
A hungry wolf had thinned the fold, Safely he refuged on the wold; And, as in den secure he lay, The thefts of night regaled his day.
From Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered) by Gay, John
The light of that furnace shone through the lattice stonework of the tomb, and in its lurid and ominous glare Adrian beheld the faces of those who refuged with him.
From Lysbeth, a Tale of the Dutch by Haggard, Henry Rider
The ministers of the Lord, that have refuged themselves to this little sanctuary, both increase and honour the number of them that swear, their own callings, and themselves.
From The Covenants And The Covenanters Covenants, Sermons, and Documents of the Covenanted Reformation by Kerr, James
The long snug harbour of Mahon, which was in the days of canvas wings almost always filled with craft refuging, is now in this era of steam usually tenantless.
From The Recipe for Diamonds by Hyne, Charles John Cutcliffe Wright
Debarred the healthier paths of life, man rushes for employment to the refuging muse; and rightly so, for he finds an employment ornamental and useful still.
From Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered) by Gay, John
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
