Word
orphanage
Phoneticsor·phan·age
US/ˈɔɹfənədʒ/
UK/ˈɔːfənɪdʒ/
Definitions
01a home for orphans
n. a building or institution where children live if their parents are dead or cannot look after them.
n. a residential facility providing care for children who have lost both parents or have been abandoned.
“The main character in the story grew up in a small orphanage in the countryside.”
“During the nineteenth century, the city established a large orphanage to house children displaced by the industrial revolution.”
Usage
Often used in historical contexts or when discussing international aid.
Teaching tip
In many modern English-speaking countries, this term is considered dated as children are now usually placed in 'foster care' or 'group homes'.
Synonyms
02the state of being an orphan
n. the condition of being an orphan.
n. the state or condition of being an orphan; orphanhood.
“The old book described the boy's long years of orphanage and loneliness.”
“The legal documents from the 1700s detailed the terms of the child's orphanage and the management of his inheritance.”
Archaic
Usage
This sense is almost entirely replaced by 'orphanhood' in modern English.
Synonyms
Real-World Examples
“Meena Geltink and Minal Tijssen were adopted from orphanages in Mumbai in the 1980s and grew up in the Netherlands.” “In the Australian outback in the mid-1940s, a young orphan is brought to a remote orphanage run by two nuns.” Etymology
Attested since the 1570s; orphan + -age.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/orphanage