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.
实用例句
1. A friend dubbed it "The Sanctuary" and the name stuck.
有位朋友戏谑地称它为“避难所”，然后这个名称就沿用了下来。
来自柯林斯例句
2. I was glad to climb into the sanctuary of my bed.
我很乐意爬上床躲起来.
来自《简明英汉词典》
3. There was a sanctuary of political refugees behind the hospital.
医院后面有一个政治难民的避难所.
来自《简明英汉词典》
4. The fleeing rebels found a sanctuary in the nearby church.
正在逃窜的反叛分子在附近的教堂里避难.
来自《简明英汉词典》
5. This island is maintained as a sanctuary for endangered species.