# asylum

/əˈsaɪɫəm/ (US) · /ɐsˈaɪləm/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/asylum
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. legal protection

noun · CEFR B2

the protection a country gives to someone who has left their own country because they were in danger.

For teachers: the legal and physical protection granted by a state to a foreign citizen who is a political refugee.

- The family moved across the border to seek asylum from the war.
- The government granted her political asylum after she provided evidence that her life was in imminent danger in her home country.

Usage: Often used with the verbs 'seek', 'grant', or 'claim'.

### 2. a safe place

noun · CEFR C1 · Literary

a place where you can go to be safe from trouble or danger.

For teachers: a place of retreat, safety, or sanctuary from pursuit or hardship.

- The quiet library was his asylum from the noisy city streets.
- For the weary traveller, the mountain monastery served as a peaceful asylum from the chaos of the civil unrest below.

Teaching tip: In modern English, this general sense of 'safety' is often replaced by 'sanctuary' or 'haven' to avoid confusion with the legal or historical senses.

### 3. historical hospital

noun · CEFR C1 · Archaic

an old word for a hospital where people with mental illnesses were kept.

For teachers: an institution for the care and often restraint of the mentally ill or destitute.

- The old stone building used to be an asylum for the poor.
- Nineteenth-century reformers worked to improve the grim conditions found in the county's largest lunatic asylum.

Teaching tip: This sense is now considered offensive or dated; modern speakers use 'psychiatric hospital' or 'mental health facility'.

## Examples

- The family applied for asylum as soon as they crossed the border.
- After the coup, several journalists sought political asylum in the neighboring country to avoid imprisonment.
- The treaty outlines the specific legal obligations that member states must uphold when processing claims for asylum from those fleeing systemic persecution or armed conflict.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.