sanctuary
Americannoun
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sanctuaries
plural
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a sacred or holy place.
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Judaism.
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the Biblical tabernacle or the Temple in Jerusalem.
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the holy of holies of these places of worship.
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an especially holy place in a temple or church.
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the part of a church around the altar; the chancel.
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a church or other sacred place where fugitives were formerly entitled to immunity from arrest.
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immunity afforded by refuge in such a place.
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any place of refuge; asylum.
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a tract of land where birds and wildlife, especially those hunted for sport, can breed and take refuge in safety from hunters.
- Synonyms:
- preserve
noun
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a holy place
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a consecrated building or shrine
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Old Testament
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the Israelite temple at Jerusalem, esp the holy of holies
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the tabernacle in which the Ark was enshrined during the wanderings of the Israelites
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the chancel, or that part of a sacred building surrounding the main altar
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a sacred building where fugitives were formerly entitled to immunity from arrest or execution
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the immunity so afforded
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a place of refuge; asylum
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a place, protected by law, where animals, esp birds, can live and breed without interference
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of sanctuary
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Late Latin sānctuārium, from sānctu- (combining form of sanctus; see Sanctus) + -ārium -ary
Explanation
The word sanctuary has religious roots, and can refer to a temple or church, but its use has broadened to include anywhere people go for peaceful tranquility or introspection. Your pickup truck might be your sanctuary if that's where you can clear your head. Historically, a sanctuary is the holiest of holy places — a temple or church. Now, it's a word for anywhere a person feels especially safe and serene. People might call their homes their sanctuary, or a beautiful spot in a quiet woods can be described as a sanctuary. It can also be a way to refer to shelter or asylum from political danger, such as: "The forbidding jungle can offer sanctuary to the guerrilla rebels."
Vocabulary lists containing sanctuary
I Am Malala
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The Secret Life of Bees
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Chains
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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:
On Sunday 150,000 have signed up to attend mass in the Pyrenean sanctuary of Lourdes.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
Animals rescued in and around Bangkok often come to the DNP's small facility for initial treatment before being transferred to a sanctuary.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
AD noted that the property is located in a gated community on Manursing Island, which has a wildlife sanctuary as well as the Playland Amusement Park.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
Playing divorced designer Elizabeth James, Richardson has an on-screen boudoir that is a sanctuary for the working creative mother: charcoal sketches; wire-framed reading glasses; ’90s white cordless landline; creamy thank-you roses on the nightstand.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026
This would prevent him from surviving in the wild, so he stayed with Dr. Taylor M. Martin at the sanctuary.
From "A Bird Will Soar" by Alison Green Myers
In recent decades, sightings were rare and Florida classified them extirpated, insisting that any spotted in nature were escapees from zoos or sanctuaries.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026
Managers at one of the UK's largest bird sanctuaries say they have seen a "significant increase" in the number of younger visitors.
From BBC ● May 9, 2026
Dictionary delights, sanctuaries around the globe, the many voices of Harry Potter and more.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 20, 2025
Altogether, 15 sanctuaries of worship were destroyed, including five in Altadena.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 12, 2025
He assured his audience that as soon as the enemy sanctuaries had been eliminated and NVA military supplies destroyed, American troops would be withdrawn.
From "Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam" by Elizabeth Partridge
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.
