asylum

[uh-sahy-luhm]

noun

1. (especially formerly) an institution for the maintenance and care of the mentally ill, orphans, or other persons requiring specialized assistance.

2. an inviolable refuge, as formerly for criminals and debtors; sanctuary.

   He sought asylum in the church.

   Synonyms: retreat, shelter, haven

3. International Law.

   1. a refuge granted an alien by a sovereign state on its own territory.

   2. a temporary refuge granted political offenders, especially in a foreign embassy.

4. any secure retreat.

asylum

/ əˈsaɪləm /

noun

1. a safe or inviolable place of refuge, esp as formerly offered by the Christian Church to criminals, outlaws, etc; sanctuary (often in the phrase give asylum to )

2. shelter; refuge

3. international law refuge afforded to a person whose extradition is sought by a foreign government

   political asylum

4. obsolete,  an institution for the shelter, treatment, or confinement of individuals, esp a mental hospital (formerly termed lunatic asylum )

Word History and Origins

Origin of asylum¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin, from Greek ásȳlon “sanctuary,” from a- a- ⁶ + sŷlon “right of seizure”

Word History and Origins

Origin of asylum¹

C15: via Latin from Greek asulon refuge, from asulos that may not be seized, from _a- ¹ + sulon right of seizure

Example Sentences

An asylum seeker from Sudan danced and laughed after murdering a Walsall hotel worker in a "vicious and frenzied attack" on a train station platform, a trial has heard.

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He travelled through Russia and Dubai and then on to the UK, where, he says, his asylum application was rejected in 2002.

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The judge therefore ordered him removed from the country and threw out his asylum case.

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The council says it is already struggling to support asylum seekers placed in the borough by the Home Office.

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Peru's ousted president Dina Boluarte on Friday insisted that she would not seek to claim asylum elsewhere, after prosecutors had asked the courts to prevent her from leaving the country.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• haven 
• refuge 
• sanctuary 
• shelter