sanctuary
noun
[ ˈsaŋ(k)tjʊəri ]
• refuge or safety from pursuit, persecution, or other danger.
• "his sons took sanctuary in the church"
Similar:
refuge,
haven,
harbour,
port in a storm,
oasis,
shelter,
retreat,
bolthole,
foxhole,
hideout,
hiding place,
hideaway,
den,
asylum,
safe house,
fastness,
querencia,
safety,
safe keeping,
protection,
security,
immunity,
• a nature reserve.
• "a bird sanctuary"
• a holy place; a temple.
• "the sanctuaries of Apollo and Athena"
Similar:
holy place,
temple,
shrine,
tabernacle,
altar,
sanctum,
inner sanctum,
holy of holies,
sacrarium,
bema,
naos,
adytum,
sanctum sanctorum,
presbytery,
Origin:
Middle English (in sanctuary (sense 3)): from Old French sanctuaire, from Latin sanctuarium, from sanctus ‘holy’. Early use in reference to a church or other sacred place where a fugitive was immune, by the law of the medieval Church, from arrest, gave rise to sanctuary (sense 1, sense 2).
