quarantine

1 of 2

noun

quar·​an·​tine ˈkwȯr-ən-ˌtēn How to pronounce quarantine (audio)
ˈkwär-
1
: a period of 40 days
2
a
: a term during which a ship arriving in port and suspected of carrying contagious disease is held in isolation from the shore
b
: a regulation placing a ship in quarantine
c
: a place where a ship is detained during quarantine
3
a
: a restraint upon the activities or communication of persons or the transport of goods designed to prevent the spread of disease or pests
b
: a place in which those under quarantine are kept
4
: a state of enforced isolation

quarantine

2 of 2

verb

quarantined; quarantining

transitive verb

1
: to detain in or exclude by quarantine
2
: to isolate from normal relations or communication
quarantine an aggressor

intransitive verb

: to establish or declare a quarantine

Examples of quarantine in a Sentence

Noun The infected people were put into quarantine. The cows will be kept in quarantine for another week. The dog was put under quarantine. Verb The hospital quarantined the infected patients. The dog was immediately quarantined.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
In South Africa, where the lucrative Million Dollar Pigeon Race is held, trainers are given a chance to win life-changing prize money, though the birds sent there from around the world risk potentially deadly viruses in quarantine before training and before the race takes place across the country. Jennifer Hassan, Washington Post, 28 Feb. 2024 The 21-day quarantine was reduced to just 72 hours for kids who got the shot. Erika Edwards, NBC News, 26 Feb. 2024 The Covid-19 pandemic reinforced Putin’s special status as the Kremlin threw a protective shield around him that required anyone who met with the president for even a few minutes to first endure two weeks in quarantine. Tribune News Service, Orange County Register, 14 Feb. 2024 In 2022, according to Chinese officials running pandemic quarantines, there were some eighty thousand North Koreans just in Dandong, a hub of the seafood industry. Ian Urbina, The New Yorker, 6 Feb. 2024 At its pandemic high, when grocery sales exploded amidst restaurant closings and quarantines, the margin rose to about 3%. Tyler Renaghan, Fortune, 12 Feb. 2024 Then, despite imposing harsh lockdowns and quarantine measures on its own population, the Hong Kong government in 2021 rolled out the red carpet for Kidman by giving her quarantine exemptions. Patrick Frater, Variety, 1 Feb. 2024 His team puzzled over the stuck fasteners and the limitations posed by the container’s quarantine in a sealed box. Daniel Wu, Washington Post, 31 Jan. 2024 Despite quarantine instructions, the child was sent to day care on Dec. 20 and 21, the health department said. Aria Bendix, NBC News, 11 Jan. 2024
Verb
Household contacts have been vaccinated and are currently quarantining. Kristen Jordan Shamus, Detroit Free Press, 5 Mar. 2024 Florida's surgeon general, Dr. Joseph Ladapo, has so far not urged parents of unvaccinated children at the school with the outbreak to get their children vaccinated, or to quarantine them. Pien Huang, NPR, 28 Feb. 2024 The Oppenheimer star could also possibly act in the project, although details are being quarantined. Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Jan. 2024 The result was The White Lotus, written at speed in August 2020 and filmed at leisure, from October to December, with cast and crew quarantined in the resort for the duration. James Medd, Condé Nast Traveler, 31 Jan. 2024 The worst Covid outbreak took hold on the Diamond Princess, which was quarantined for two weeks in Yokohama, Japan. The Week Staff, theweek, 15 Jan. 2024 This led to over 20 million such alerts, each of which came with a request to quarantine—quite a burden. Diana Gitig, Ars Technica, 20 Dec. 2023 As a result, poultry farmers in the county have been forced to destroy more than 1 million birds while trying to quarantine their flocks to curb the outbreak. Salvador Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 9 Jan. 2024 Health officials recommend anyone who thinks they may have been exposed to quarantine alone at home and stay away from other people. Dr. Angela Zhang, ABC News, 8 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'quarantine.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

partly modification of French quarantaine, from Old French, from quarante forty, from Latin quadraginta, from quadra- (akin to quattuor four) + -ginta (akin to viginti twenty); partly modification of Italian quarantena quarantine of a ship, from quaranta forty, from Latin quadraginta — more at four, vigesimal

First Known Use

Noun

1617, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1801, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of quarantine was in 1617

Dictionary Entries Near quarantine

Cite this Entry

“Quarantine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quarantine. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

quarantine

1 of 2 noun
quar·​an·​tine ˈkwȯr-ən-ˌtēn How to pronounce quarantine (audio)
ˈkwär-
1
: a period during which a ship arriving in port and suspected of carrying contagious disease is forbidden contact with the shore
2
: a limiting or forbidding of movements of persons or goods that is designed to prevent the spread of disease or pests
3
: the period during which a person with a contagious disease is under quarantine
4
: a place where persons are kept in quarantine

quarantine

2 of 2 verb
quarantined; quarantining
: to put or hold in quarantine : isolate
Etymology

Noun

from Italian quarantena "quarantine, period of forty days," probably from early French quarantaine "period of forty days," from earlier quarante "forty," from Latin quadraginta "forty," from quadra- "four"

Word Origin
As bad as contagious diseases are today, they were much more frightening in the Middle Ages. No effective treatment or cure was known then. When it was found out that ships could carry diseases from port to port, authorities acted to protect their citizens. Any ship suspected of carrying a disease was forced to remain offshore for a time. Usually about forty days had to pass before it was allowed to dock. Then if no signs of disease were found on the ship, it was allowed to unload its passengers and cargo. The Italians called this restriction period quarantena. They based the word on a French word quarantaine, meaning "a period of forty days." This French word was derived from the Latin quadraginta, meaning "forty." It was the Italian word that was taken into English as quarantine in the 17th century.

Medical Definition

quarantine

1 of 2 noun
quar·​an·​tine ˈkwȯr-ən-ˌtēn, ˈkwär- How to pronounce quarantine (audio)
1
a
: a term during which a ship arriving in port and suspected of carrying contagious disease is held in isolation from the shore
b
: a regulation placing a ship in quarantine
c
: a place where a ship is detained during quarantine
2
a
: a restraint upon the activities or communication of persons or the transport of goods that is designed to prevent the spread of disease or pests
b
: a place in which those under quarantine are kept

quarantine

2 of 2 verb
quarantined; quarantining

transitive verb

: to detain in or exclude by quarantine

intransitive verb

: to establish or declare a quarantine
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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