hospital
Americannoun
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an institution in which sick or injured people are given medical or surgical treatment.
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a similar establishment for the care of animals.
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a repair shop for specific portable objects: doll hospital.
violin hospital;
doll hospital.
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British. an institution supported by charity or taxes for people in need of care, as a children's home or nursing home.
noun
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an institution for the medical, surgical, obstetric, or psychiatric care and treatment of patients
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(modifier) having the function of a hospital
a hospital ship
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a repair shop for something specified
a dolls' hospital
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archaic a charitable home, hospice, or school
Other Word Forms
- minihospital noun
- multihospital adjective
- posthospital adjective
Etymology
Origin of hospital
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English (h)ospital, “lodging for pilgrims and travelers, hostel,” Old French (h)ospital, from Medieval Latin hospitāle “guesthouse, inn,” noun use of neuter of Latin hospitālis “hospitable,” equivalent to hospit- stem of hospes “guest, visitor, host” + -ālis -al 1 ( def. ); hospitium
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.
Soon afterward, he was in the hospital, receiving treatment for a blockage in his bowels.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 5, 2026
Another time, when Kavanagh was suffering ulcerative colitis, he brought his laptop and worked from a hospital bed.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 5, 2026
He was thrown from the vehicle following the incident and was taken to hospital for treatment where he was placed in police custody.
From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026
I was born in the wee hours of Dec.15, 1980 at St. Mary’s Hospital, now Hoboken University Medical, the same hospital where Frank Sinatra was born.
From Salon • Apr. 4, 2026
He had apparently become ill in his cell and been taken by car to the municipal hospital in The Hague.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
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.
