sanatorium
Americannoun
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sanatoriums,
plural
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sanatoria
plural
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a hospital for the treatment of chronic diseases, as tuberculosis or various nervous or mental disorders.
noun
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an institution for the medical care and recuperation of persons who are chronically ill
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a health resort
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a room in a boarding school where sick pupils may be treated in isolation
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of sanatorium
1830–40; < New Latin, equivalent to Latin sanā ( re ) to heal + -tōrium -tory 2
Explanation
A sanatorium is a place to go when you're suffering or recuperating from a long illness. It was once common for tuberculosis patients to be treated at a sanatorium. In some parts of the world, including Russia and the Czech Republic, a sanatorium is more of a health spa, with the added benefit of available medical treatments. While there are very few sanatoriums left in North America, they were once the preferred location for chronically ill patients, especially before antibiotics for treating tuberculosis were developed in the mid-20th century. The Latin sanus, "well, healthy, or sane," is the root of sanatorium.
Vocabulary lists containing sanatorium
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:
She also suffered other health issues during childhood and spent two years in a sanatorium.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
Later, a group of 31 were sent to “a sanatorium for children in Moscow.”
From Washington Post ● Apr. 5, 2023
The relentless 10-month war has prompted a local commander to transform a Soviet-era sanatorium into a recovery center for servicemen to treat both mental and physical ailments.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 5, 2023
This was because they had arrived from a sanatorium used to recuperate respiratory patients.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2022
After being cured in the sanatorium, Cady goes back home and continues writing to Hans.
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
The old sanatoria in the Alps to which European TB patients lucky enough to have wealthy relatives might be sent focused on cleanliness, fresh air and sunlight, ample nutritious food and rest.
From Salon ● Feb. 21, 2025
Crawford estimates that in 1925 alone the couple spent a third of their income on doctors, medicines, and stays in hospitals or sanatoria.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 28, 2022
The lawsuit is directed at the federal government, as it was Canada that established, funded and oversaw residential schools, Indian hospitals and sanatoria.
From The Guardian ● May 11, 2018
Rehab centers have the feel of pre-modern sanatoria.
From Slate ● Feb. 23, 2016
At the sanatoria, as a rule, very little attention is paid to the supposed difficulty of digestion of milk and eggs and perhaps butter.
From Health Through Will Power by James J. (James Joseph) Walsh
Some of Kyiv's most vulnerable citizens – the elderly and women with young children – are being offered places in converted sanatoriums and rehabilitation centres in the city's forested outskirts.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
His tuberculosis, which before it killed him at age 40 led to rest “cures” at sanatoriums notable chiefly for their ineffectiveness?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
The southern town of Yalta was the prime holiday destination during Soviet times, with many sanatoriums built in and around it.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 31, 2023
Located in the Carpathian foothills, Morshyn's economy is dependent on tourists visiting its hotels and sanatoriums and was hit badly by the first wave of lockdowns last year, Mayor Ruslan Ilnytsky told Reuters.
From Reuters ● Nov. 3, 2021
These sanatoriums you live in most of the time never do you any good.
From Blacksheep! Blacksheep! by Meredith Nicholson
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