conservatory

noun

con·​ser·​va·​to·​ry kən-ˈsər-və-ˌtȯr-ē 

plural conservatories

1

: a greenhouse for growing or displaying plants

2

: a school specializing in one of the fine arts

a music conservatory

Synonyms

• greenhouse

Examples of conservatory in a Sentence

the Peabody Conservatory of Music

the college's conservatory is entirely devoted to cultivating and displaying orchids

Recent Examples on the Web

After the conservatory was demolished to make room for the West Wing in 1902, first lady Edith Roosevelt added flair to the area with her colonial-style West Garden. —Kyler Alvord, People.com, 1 Aug. 2025

Pianist Benny Green will play a July 31 concert at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music to launch the conservatory's new partnership with the Manty Ellis Community Foundation. —Jim Higgins, jsonline.com, 30 July 2025

Each room of the conservatory was landscaped with mass plantings versus just a collection of specimens. —Janet B. Carson, Arkansas Online, 29 June 2025

The one downside was the conservatory was older and they were not equipped to deal with the intense heat. —Janet B. Carson, Arkansas Online, 29 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Late Latin conservātōrium "something that preserves" (Medieval Latin, "fish pond"), from Latin conservāre "to save or keep from danger, preserve" + -tōrium, suffix of places (from neuter of -tōrius, deverbal adjective suffix originally forming derivatives from agent nouns ending in -tōr-, -tor); (sense 2) after Italian conservatorio, originally denoting a home for foundlings and orphans who were given a musical education — more at conserve entry 1

First Known Use

1664, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

conservatory

noun

con·​ser·​va·​to·​ry kən-ˈsər-və-ˌtōr-ē 

-ˌtȯr-

plural conservatories

1

: a greenhouse for growing or displaying plants

2

: a place of instruction in some special study (as music)