From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Asylum \A*sy"lum\, n.; pl. E. {Asylums}, L. {Asyla}. [L. asylum,
Gr. ?, fr. ? exempt from spoliation, inviolable; 'a priv. + ?
right of seizure.]
1. A sanctuary or place of refuge and protection, where
criminals and debtors found shelter, and from which they
could not be forcibly taken without sacrilege.
[1913 Webster]
So sacred was the church to some, that it had the
right of an asylum or sanctuary. --Ayliffe.
[1913 Webster]
Note: The name was anciently given to temples, altars,
statues of the gods, and the like. In later times
Christian churches were regarded as asylums in the same
sense.
[1913 Webster]
2. Any place of retreat and security.
[1913 Webster]
Earth has no other asylum for them than its own cold
bosom. --Southey.
[1913 Webster]
3. An institution for the protection or relief of some class
of destitute, unfortunate, or afflicted persons; as, an
asylum for the aged, for the blind, or for the insane; a
lunatic asylum; an orphan asylum.
[1913 Webster]
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
asylum
n 1: a shelter from danger or hardship [syn: {refuge},
{sanctuary}, {asylum}]
2: a hospital for mentally incompetent or unbalanced person
[syn: {mental hospital}, {psychiatric hospital}, {mental
institution}, {institution}, {mental home}, {insane asylum},
{asylum}]
From Latin-English FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.1.1 [fd-lat-eng]:
asylum
asylum
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