laboratory

noun, often attributive lab·o·ra·to·ry \ ˈla-b(ə-)rə-ˌtȯr-ē , sometimes ˈla-bər-ˌtȯr- or ˈla-bə-ˌtȯr- or lə-ˈbȯr-ə-ˌtȯr- , British usually lə-ˈbär-ə-t(ə-)rē \

Updated on: 16 Apr 2018

Definition of laboratory

plural laboratories

1 a : a place equipped for experimental study in a science or for testing and analysis

a research laboratory

; broadly : a place providing opportunity for experimentation, observation, or practice in a field of study

b : a place like a laboratory for testing, experimentation, or practice

That area is a laboratory for cultivating the germ of terrorism.

2 : an academic period set aside for laboratory work

a course of study requiring two lectures and one laboratory per week

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Examples of laboratory in a Sentence

experiments conducted in a modern laboratory

Recent Examples of laboratory from the Web

Until recently, researchers working with octopuses, squids, and other cephalopods routinely faced this dilemma, an ethical and, in some cases, legal challenge to studying these intelligent creatures in the laboratory.

— danna staaf, Science | AAAS, "How to put an octopus to sleep—and make cephalopod research more humane," 4 Apr. 2018
Like all of the brand’s scents, Villa Bordighera 20 was brewed in a laboratory in the basement of the Plaza Hotel.

— shannon barbour, The Cut, "The Plaza Hotel’s Resident Fragrance House Rereleases an Old Favorite," 30 Mar. 2018
But fusion power has been generated only for short periods in the laboratory and no fusion reactors exist.

— rob nikolewski, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Feds extend funding for nuclear fusion project, General Atomics breathes sigh of relief," 27 Mar. 2018
The beetles don’t fly well, Dr. Linz said, and are easy to keep in a laboratory.

— asher elbein, New York Times, "Insects Flew Before Anything Else Did. So How Did They Get Their Wings?," 26 Mar. 2018
But making eggs in the laboratory is considered a safer option.

— amy lieu, Fox News, "Human eggs grown in lab for first time, creating hope for young females with cancer," 15 Mar. 2018
That’s why in a new study, researchers recreated the atmospheres of alien worlds in the laboratory, giving them a model for understanding these hazy worlds, reports Marty Halton at the BBC.

— jason daley, Smithsonian, "Purple Haze: Alien Atmospheres Recreated In the Lab," 13 Mar. 2018
Hackler and Ellinger say American Semiconductor offered the chips for public sale last May and now has orders to begin filling next year, using manufacturing equipment in laboratory.

— john sowell, idahostatesman, "This Boise firm has developed bendable computer chips. They may be on your body soon. | Idaho Statesman," 23 Feb. 2018
The space agency has teamed up with Washington State University researchers to determine how a submarine would work on Titan by re-creating one of its seas in the laboratory.

— alex stuckey, San Antonio Express-News, "NASA plans to send a submarine to Saturn’s largest moon in next 20 years," 12 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'laboratory.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.