dormitory

noun

dor·​mi·​to·​ry ˈdȯr-mə-ˌtȯr-ē 

plural dormitories

1

: a room for sleeping

especially : a large room containing numerous beds

2

: a residence hall providing rooms for individuals or for groups usually without private baths

3

chiefly British : a residential community inhabited chiefly by commuters

Examples of dormitory in a Sentence

Guests at the camp can stay in private cabins or for a smaller fee in the dormitories.

Recent Examples on the Web

The use of the Oreshnik missile, which Russia has used against Ukraine only twice before, came after the Kremlin accused Kyiv of striking a college dormitory, killing 21 people, and vowed retaliation. —J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 24 May 2026

On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin alleged said several were killed and dozens injured, as a result of Ukrainian drone strikes on a college dormitory in Starobilsk in the Luhansk People's Republic. —Natalia Kushnir, ABC News, 23 May 2026

The Page academy took up seven acres in the Wilshire-Pico neighborhood, operating a small village of classrooms, dormitories, a printing press, a woodworking shop, and a miniature steam railroad for ferrying the boys around the campus. —Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2026

It gets built in laboratories, in dormitories, in startups, in classrooms, and by legislators. —Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 19 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin dormitorium, from dormire

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing dormitory

• dormitory town

Rhymes for dormitory

• allegory
• amatory
• auditory
• category
• clerestory
• crematory
• desultory
• dilatory
• excretory
• feudatory
• gustatory
• gyratory

Kids Definition

dormitory

noun

dor·​mi·​to·​ry ˈdȯr-mə-ˌtōr-ē 

-ˌtȯr-

plural dormitories

1

: a sleeping room especially for several people

2

: a residence hall having many sleeping rooms