quarantine

American  

[kwawr-uhn-teen, kwor-, kwawr-uhn-teen, kwor-] / ˈkwɔr ənˌtin, ˈkwɒr-, ˌkwɔr ənˈtin, ˌkwɒr- /

noun

• quarantines
  plural

1. 

   a strict isolation imposed to prevent the spread of disease.

2. a period, originally 40 days, of detention or isolation imposed upon ships, persons, animals, or plants on arrival at a port or place, when suspected of carrying some infectious or contagious disease.

3. a system of measures maintained by governmental authority at ports, frontiers, etc., for preventing the spread of disease.

4. the branch of the governmental service concerned with such measures.

5. a place or station at which such measures are carried out, as a special port or dock where ships are detained.

6. the detention or isolation enforced.

7. the place, especially a hospital, where people are detained.

8. a period of 40 days.

9. social, political, or economic isolation imposed as a punishment, as in ostracizing an individual or enforcing sanctions against a foreign state.

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verb (used with object)

• quarantines,
  present (3rd person singular)
• quarantined,
  past participle,  past
• quarantining
  present participle

1. to put in or subject to quarantine.

2. to exclude, detain, or isolate for political, social, or hygienic reasons.

quarantine British  

/ ˈkwɒrənˌtiːn /

noun

1. a period of isolation or detention, esp of persons or animals arriving from abroad, to prevent the spread of disease, usually consisting of the maximum known incubation period of the suspected disease

2. the place or area where such detention is enforced

3. any period or state of enforced isolation

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verb

1. to isolate in or as if in quarantine

2. to withhold (a portion of a welfare payment) from a person or group of people

quarantine Cultural  

1. The isolation of people who either have a contagious disease or have been exposed to one, in an attempt to prevent the spread of the disease.

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Discover More

The term is sometimes used politically to designate the political and economic isolation of a nation in retribution for unacceptable policies: “When Iraq invaded Kuwait, it was placed in quarantine by the nations of the world.”

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• prequarantine
  noun
• quarantiner
  noun
• quarantinable
  adjective
• unquarantined
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• quarantines
  plural

Participles

• quarantining
  present
• quarantined
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• quarantine
  simple
• quarantines
  simple
• have quarantined
  perfect
• has quarantined
  perfect
• am quarantining
  progressive
• are quarantining
  progressive
• is quarantining
  progressive
• have been quarantining
  perfect progressive
• has been quarantining
  perfect progressive

Past

• quarantined
  simple
• had quarantined
  perfect
• was quarantining
  progressive
• were quarantining
  progressive
• had been quarantining
  perfect progressive

Future

• will quarantine
  simple
• will have quarantined
  perfect
• will be quarantining
  progressive
• will have been quarantining
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of quarantine

First recorded in 1600–10; from Italian quarantina, variant of quarantena, originally Upper Italian (Venetian): “period of forty days, group of forty,” derivative of quaranta “forty,” ultimately from Latin quadrāgintā

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Explanation

If you contract something highly infectious, such as pinkeye, please quarantine yourself so that you don’t infect others with it. This means you’ll have to stay in isolation and avoid contact with other people. Starting in the 16th century, a quarantine lasted specifically 40 days. The word is in fact derived from the Latin quadraginta, which means "forty." Originally, this referred to the amount of time a widow could remain in her deceased husband’s house, then referred to the period of time a ship had to wait off a country’s port if its passengers were disease-stricken. Now, it can mean a period of isolation of any length, and can be used as both a verb and a noun.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

quarantine quarantines quarantined quarantining

The new patient, a 39-year-old man, is a close relative of the first case and was already in quarantine when he fell ill on Tuesday, Kenya's health ministry says.

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026

That’s very different from our recent experience with hantavirus, which can take 42 days for symptoms to show, necessitating long periods of quarantine for people who were exposed.

From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2026

As many as 200 people with whom she may have had contact were placed under quarantine over the incident, People of Baikal said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

The canine is under quarantine, and officials say it’s doing well.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

I could also barely make out the open door of the mobile quarantine facility, our next home, and I headed for it.

From "Flying to the Moon: An Astronaut's Story" by Michael Collins

To be sure, screwworms can be contained through quarantines, tighter surveillance, and other methods.

From Barron's ● Jun. 8, 2026

The department said it had also enacted "quarantines, movement controls, and surveillance" in that area.

From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026

The quarantines for returning travelers could end up being lengthy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 9, 2026

Connecting forced and chosen quarantines with experiences of incarceration, she explores also the solidarity that can arise in situations of the greatest difficulty and oppression.

From Salon ● May 8, 2025

Farmer strongly believed that quarantines were not an effective strategy for handling AIDS, but the Cuban approach had been far more humane.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French

But clearly, his decision didn’t stick, and in 2020, the pair quarantined together during the pandemic, a revelation that arose when eagle-eyed fans noticed their social media content had identical backgrounds.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026

Like many other patients, she co-operated fully with the guidelines even during the frightening time when her 11-month-old baby, whom she was still breastfeeding, was taken away from her and quarantined for 21 days.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

People with Ebola-like symptoms avoid seeking treatment, fearing they will be quarantined.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday that the U.S. plans to transport all seven Americans to Germany, where they will likely continue to be quarantined.

From MarketWatch ● May 18, 2026

Polio, which had kept my parents quarantined indoors during the summers of their childhood, had been conquered by the Salk vaccine.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

After that, Ugandan officials quickly swung into action, tracking down and quarantining dozens of people the man had encountered while ill.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026

In the U.S., some Americans who disembarked earlier in the trip and returned home before the outbreak had been made public are quarantining at home.

From MarketWatch ● May 12, 2026

Spain's health ministry earlier said one Spaniard who is quarantining in Madrid after being evacuated from the vessel had also provisionally tested positive for hantavirus on Monday.

From BBC ● May 12, 2026

Some other countries were only quarantining people from the ship for a few days before telling them to isolate at home, the minister said.

From Barron's ● May 11, 2026

Currie admitted that the illness was “strengthened by a particular construction of the atmosphere,” but he insisted that the best way to deal with it was by quarantining the sick.

From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy

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Related Words

• block off
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