sanctuary

noun, plural sanc·tu·ar·ies.

1. a sacred or holy place.
2. Judaism.
   1. the Biblical tabernacle or the Temple in Jerusalem.
   2. the holy of holies of these places of worship.
3. an especially holy place in a temple or church.
4. the part of a church around the altar; the chancel.
5. a church or other sacred place where fugitives were formerly entitled to immunity from arrest.
6. immunity afforded by refuge in such a place.
7. any place of refuge; asylum.
8. a tract of land where birds and wildlife, especially those hunted for sport, can breed and take refuge in safety from hunters.

noun plural -aries

1. a holy place
2. a consecrated building or shrine
3. Old Testament
   1. the Israelite temple at Jerusalem, esp the holy of holies
   2. the tabernacle in which the Ark was enshrined during the wanderings of the Israelites
4. the chancel, or that part of a sacred building surrounding the main altar
5. 1. a sacred building where fugitives were formerly entitled to immunity from arrest or execution
   2. the immunity so afforded
6. a place of refuge; asylum
7. a place, protected by law, where animals, esp birds, can live and breed without interference

n.early 14c., “building set apart for holy worship,” from Anglo-French sentuarie, Old French saintuaire “sacred relic, holy thing; reliquary, sanctuary,” from Late Latin sanctuarium “a sacred place, shrine” (especially the Hebrew Holy of Holies; see sanctum), also “a private room,” from Latin sanctus “holy” (see saint (n.)). Since the time of Constantine and by medieval Church law, fugitives or debtors enjoyed immunity from arrest in certain churches, hence transferred sense of “immunity from punishment” (late 14c.). Exceptions were made in England in cases of treason and sacrilege. General (non-ecclesiastical) sense of “place of refuge or protection” is attested from 1560s; as “land set aside for wild plants or animals to breed and live” it is recorded from 1879.