# enclave

/ˈɑnˌkɫeɪv/ (US) · /ˈɛnkleɪv/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/enclave
Updated: 2026-08-27

## Senses

### 1. territory

noun · CEFR C1 · Formal

a piece of land or a country that is entirely surrounded by the territory of another country.

For teachers: a portion of territory within or surrounded by a larger territory whose inhabitants are culturally or politically distinct.

- The small mountain village is a political enclave surrounded by a different nation.
- The treaty established the coastal town as a sovereign enclave, ensuring its administrative independence despite being entirely encircled by the neighbouring state.

### 3. computing

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

a protected area in a computer's memory that other programs cannot see or change.

For teachers: a secure, isolated portion of an application's address space that protects sensitive data from unauthorized access by other processes.

- The software stores your passwords in a secure enclave to keep them safe from hackers.
- The processor architecture uses hardware-based enclaves to ensure that even if the operating system is compromised, the encryption keys remain inaccessible.

### 4. to surround

verb · CEFR C2 · Formal · Technical

to make a piece of land or a group entirely surrounded by something else.

For teachers: to enclose a territory or group within a foreign or distinct environment.

- The new borders will enclave the small town within the neighboring province.
- The geopolitical shifts following the war served to enclave several ethnic minorities, creating complex administrative challenges for the new government.

## Examples

- The neighborhood is a quiet enclave of artists in the busy city.
- The diplomatic enclave is heavily guarded and contains the embassies of several different nations.
- The software creates a secure enclave within the processor to ensure that even if the operating system is compromised, the user's private encryption keys remain inaccessible to attackers.

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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.