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

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

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

In the end, Price’s designer makeover came at the perfect time, concluding just before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw the family forced to quarantine inside the dwelling for weeks on end.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026

Director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the final contact of a person exposed to hantavirus on the MV Hondius had completed their quarantine period, tested negative and returned home.

From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026

In March, a quarantine was placed over La Mesa after multiple Mexican fruit flies were found.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026

President William Ruto previously said it would be "unfortunate" to refuse the request for the quarantine centre after decades of US health assistance.

From Barron's ● Jun. 23, 2026

The one difference was that early in the nineteenth century Manhattan had established very strict quarantine rules.

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

The Texas Animal Health Commission also asks that cattlemen closely monitor wounds, reduce biting pests like flies and ticks whenever possible, and abide by infestation quarantines drawn by state authorities.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026

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

“If it’s true that the novel coronavirus would kill millions without shelter-in-place orders and quarantines, then the extraordinary measures being carried out in cities and states around the country are surely justified,” Bhattacharaya wrote.

From Salon ● Nov. 27, 2024

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

Eighteen Americans have been quarantined for weeks at a specialized facility at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 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

Two of the exposed Californians are quarantined at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2026

Soon after their arrival they will be repatriated, or, in the case of the 14 Spaniards aboard, taken to Madrid to be quarantined.

From BBC ● May 8, 2026

Uncle Clyde has TB—tuberculosis—and has been quarantined at the hospital.

From "Betty Before X" by Ilyasah Shabazz and Renée Watson

It didn’t take endless quarantining with my spouse during the COVID-19 pandemic to end my marriage of over two decades.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026

But what do we actually know about the hantavirus that has infected at least 11 people, killed three of them and led to the quarantining of dozens more across the globe?

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 16, 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

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

We found what turned out to be one of the last buses out of Tembisa, for the police were quarantining the ghetto, barring all company vehicles and public transportation.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane

Related Words

• block off
• sequester