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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Chains
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The Secret Life of Bees
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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:
Wild Futures said the sanctuary began when it started rescuing woolly monkeys from the pet trade.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
The area borders the vast Rose Atoll marine sanctuary, where endangered species of Hawksbill turtle thrive on vibrant reefs.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
Greg Larkin, one of the organizers of the Hudson Valley retreat for corporate professionals, said his clients were the type of people who were seeking “a sanctuary from the ‘crush-it summit.’”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
The thing that helped most was finding my own secret garden, a nearby bird sanctuary that crags out over Lake Michigan.
From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2026
“See if the sanctuary is the best place for her. See if she can even be saved.”
From "A Bird Will Soar" by Alison Green Myers
The experts studied chimpanzees and bonobos living at two great ape sanctuaries in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
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
Dictionary delights, sanctuaries around the globe, the many voices of Harry Potter and more.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 20, 2025
“Schools must always be sanctuaries, free from environmental harm. Environmental justice is educational justice, and Los Angeles Unified remains unwavering in our commitment to a safer, healthier future for every student.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 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.
