shelter-in-place

adjective

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

see also shelter in place at shelter entry 2

Examples of shelter-in-place in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Olin told Newsweek that the shelter-in-place order was lifted after 45 minutes, with the leak contained. —Dan Gooding shane Croucher, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 May 2025

Severe weather At least nine tornadoes were reported in Wisconsin and Minnesota on Thursday, displacing residents and prompting shelter-in-place alerts. —Jade Walker, CNN Money, 16 May 2025

Staff immediately contacted the Waterbury Police Department’s school resource officer assigned to the high school, prompting a lockdown/shelter-in-place protocol, Bessette said. —Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 14 May 2025

Lockdown/shelter-in-place orders have since been lifted, and regular school activities resumed late Wednesday morning. —Muri Assunção, New York Daily News, 14 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1977, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for shelter-in-place

• aromatase
• hydrogenase
• nitrogenase
• oligoclase
• oxygenase
• plagioclase
• polymerase
• streptokinase
• triphosphatase
• abase
• airspace
• apace