# asylum

Pronunciation: say "uh-SY-luhm" /əˈsaɪləm/

## Noun

1. The physical and legal protection given by a place of safety, especially to political refugees.
   - Simple: Safety and legal protection given to someone, especially a person who fled danger in their own country.
   - _The journalist sought asylum in a neighboring country after publishing the leaked documents._
   - _Their application for asylum was approved after months of review._
2. A place that provides safety, shelter, or refuge from danger or harm.
   - Simple: A safe place where someone can go to escape danger.
   - _The mountain monastery served as an asylum for refugees crossing the border._
   - _Fleeing the riots, they found asylum within the embassy walls._

## Noun

3. A place of care or confinement for disadvantaged people, especially those with mental illness. *(dated)*
   - Simple: A place where people with mental illness were kept, cared for, and sometimes locked away.
   - _The reformer toured the crowded asylum and condemned the chains still used on patients._
   - _After the breakdown, the family committed him to a private asylum._

## Origin

From Latin asylum, itself from Ancient Greek ἄσυλον (ásulon).

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/asylum (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).