refuge
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
-
shelter or protection, as from the weather or danger
-
any place, person, action, or thing that offers or appears to offer protection, help, or relief
accused of incompetence, he took refuge in lying
-
another name for traffic island
verb
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of refuge
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin refugium, from refug(ere) “to turn and flee, run away” ( re- re- + fugere “to flee”; see fugitive) + -ium -ium
Explanation
To take refuge is to find a safe place. You might take refuge under a bridge in a hail storm, or in a basement during a tornado. Refuge comes from a French word meaning "to flee," and, in most cases, a refuge is a place to flee to in order to get away from people or places that are unsafe. A refuge is a safe place, such as a building or even another country, as in "they sought refuge from the war by leaving their homeland," or it is a simple, personal place of comfort — like a friend's couch.
Vocabulary lists containing refuge
The Star-Spangled Banner
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Persepolis
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
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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:
"Wildlife," he said, "has long been a refuge - probably more than I realise."
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Now, Brazil has become one of the world’s top destinations for Cubans seeking refuge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
People could be seen taking refuge near the windows and on the roof of the building, while the blaze raged in the lower floors.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
In “God Knows Where I Am,” Linda Bishop, diagnosed variously as having “bipolar disorder with psychosis” or schizoaffective disorder, drifts “between shelters, hospitals, and jail” before finding refuge in a deserted farmhouse.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
Jo bore up very well till the last flutter of blue ribbon vanished, when she retired to her refuge, the garret, and cried till she couldn’t cry any more.
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
Mobile home parks in Carson are among the last refuges of affordable housing for many residents.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
Tehran's many parks, usually green lungs in a metropolis often choked by pollution, have become refuges since the fighting began.
From Barron's ● Apr. 2, 2026
Instead of a continuous hard shoulder, there are refuges every mile.
From BBC ● Feb. 18, 2026
“On the other hand, it could be that technology has stolen the last refuges where we used to accept boredom.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 27, 2026
These particular refuges occupy critical positions in the conservation of western waterfowl.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
“People are homeless, they have been refuged to the mountains.”
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 21, 2022
Exults on hearing, from his man Will., that the lady has refuged herself at Hampstead.
From Clarissa Harlowe; or the history of a young lady — Volume 5 by Richardson, Samuel
The ministers of the Lord, that have refuged themselves to this little sanctuary, both increase and honour the number of them that swear, their own callings, and themselves.
From The Covenants And The Covenanters Covenants, Sermons, and Documents of the Covenanted Reformation by Kerr, James
The Serb students refuged in London had post cards printed of the murderer Princip, on which he was described as a national hero!
From Twenty Years Of Balkan Tangle by Durham, M. E. (Mary Edith)
The light of that furnace shone through the lattice stonework of the tomb, and in its lurid and ominous glare Adrian beheld the faces of those who refuged with him.
From Lysbeth, a Tale of the Dutch by Haggard, Henry Rider
The long snug harbour of Mahon, which was in the days of canvas wings almost always filled with craft refuging, is now in this era of steam usually tenantless.
From The Recipe for Diamonds by Hyne, Charles John Cutcliffe Wright
Debarred the healthier paths of life, man rushes for employment to the refuging muse; and rightly so, for he finds an employment ornamental and useful still.
From Fables of John Gay (Somewhat Altered) by Gay, John
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.
