shelter in place
1 of 2phrase
: to remain inside in one's current location until a danger has passed : to temporarily take shelter in a protected space
The … campus was placed under lockdown in response to the shooting. People on campus were advised to shelter in place. No students were hurt or endangered, the school said.—
Julia Jacobo
Julia JacoboThese communities—including our own—need to start hardening themselves against future fires. That means preparing homes for fires the way we already do for earthquakes and floods. It also means developing better alert systems, heeding evacuation warnings when they come and being prepared to shelter in place when escape routes are cut off …—The Press Democrat (Santa Rosa, California)
The Press Democrat (Santa Rosa, California)
variants
or less commonly shelter in place
: instructing or requiring people to remain in their current location until a danger has passed
The governor has issued a shelter-in-place order.
: of or relating to sheltering in place
shelter-in-place drills
Examples of shelter in place in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Ashley Portillo, CBS News, 6 Dec. 2025
Authorities lifted an overnight shelter-in-place Saturday after a fire aboard a container ship at the Port of Los Angeles raised hazardous-materials concerns and drew more than 100 firefighters to the scene.
—Nbc News, NBC news, 22 Nov. 2025
The shelter-in-place order was gradually diminished in the hours following the accident, but contaminants have since leached into the surrounding area.
—Staff, Louisville Courier Journal, 14 Nov. 2025
The smoke plume grew for hours, placing all of the city and the surrounding region under a shelter-in-place order for much of the evening.
—Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shelter in place
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Adjective
The six agencies within the Arapahoe County 911 Authority got the new emergency notification system in October, which provides improved and quicker communication to community members during emergencies, for example, wildfires, evacuations, hazmat incidents and shelter-in-place orders.
—Ashley Portillo, CBS News, 6 Dec. 2025
Authorities lifted an overnight shelter-in-place Saturday after a fire aboard a container ship at the Port of Los Angeles raised hazardous-materials concerns and drew more than 100 firefighters to the scene.
—Nbc News, NBC news, 22 Nov. 2025
The shelter-in-place order was gradually diminished in the hours following the accident, but contaminants have since leached into the surrounding area.
—Staff, Louisville Courier Journal, 14 Nov. 2025
The smoke plume grew for hours, placing all of the city and the surrounding region under a shelter-in-place order for much of the evening.
—Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shelter in place
Cite this Entry
“Shelter in place.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shelter%20in%20place. Accessed 12 Dec. 2025.
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