Definition of quarantine
(Entry 1 of 2)
1
: a period of 40 days
2a
: 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
3a
: 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
verb
quarantined; quarantining
Definition of quarantine (Entry 2 of 2)
1
: to detain in or exclude by quarantine
2
: to isolate from normal relations or communication
quarantine an aggressor
: to establish or declare a quarantine
Test Your Vocabulary
Great Words for Scrabble
-
- Which of the following Q-without-U words means the number five in cards or dice?

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
TAKE THE QUIZ
A daily challenge for crossword fanatics.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share quarantine
Time Traveler for quarantine
The first known use of quarantine was in 1617
See more words from the same year