/ ˈsæŋktʃuəri; NAmE -ueri/ noun ( pl. -ies )
1.
[ C ] an area where wild birds or animals are protected and encouraged to breed
SYN reserve :
a bird / wildlife sanctuary
2.
[ U ] safety and protection, especially for people who are being chased or attacked :
to take sanctuary in a place
The government offered sanctuary to 4 000 refugees.
She longed for the sanctuary of her own home.
3.
[ C , usually sing. ] a safe place, especially one where people who are being chased or attacked can stay and be protected :
The church became a sanctuary for the refugees.
4.
[ C ] a holy building or the part of it that is considered the most holy
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WORD ORIGIN
Middle English (in sense 4): 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 senses 1 to 3.