dormitory

Definition

A room containing a number of beds (and often some other furniture and/or utilities) for sleeping, often applied to student and backpacker accommodation of this kind.

Etymology

From Middle English dormitory, dormytory, dormytorye, borrowed from Latin dormītōrium (“a sleeping-room”), from dormiō (“to sleep”). Doublet of dormitorium and dorter.

Example Sentences

• "She will be much more likely to meet his wishes after a residence at the castle, than an imprisonment on short commons in her dormitory in Welbeck Street; for in one case she only learnt how much she could endure, in the other she will find how much she can enjoy."
• "The foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova was responding to a report last week about an item in the 2024 US air force budget for building a dormitory at RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk for personnel on a “potential surety mission” – military jargon for nuclear safety and security."