orphanage

[ awr-fuh-nij ]

noun

1. an institution for the housing and care of orphans.
2. the state of being an orphan; orphanhood.
3. Archaic. orphans collectively.

orphanage

/ ˈɔːfənɪdʒ /

noun

1. an institution for orphans and abandoned children
2. the state of being an orphan

Word History and Origins

Origin of orphanage¹

First recorded in 1530–40; orphan + -age

Example Sentences

Dani Nelson, who was adopted to the US in 2017, said she was given basic care at an orphanage in the southwestern city of Guiyang, but it was “not enough for me to live a normal life”.

From BBC

Gladys Johnston was three when she was adopted from an Irish orphanage and brought up in the Scottish Highlands as an only child.

From BBC

Catherine gave birth in an orphanage in Dublin and, because of attitudes at the time about children born out of wedlock, she was coerced into giving Gladys up for adoption.

From BBC

Labeled “the devil’s child” for her vitiligo at her orphanage, DePrince found hope in a magazine photo of an American ballerina in pointe shoes.

From Los Angeles Times

Born in Kenema, Sierra Leone, in 1995, DePrince was sent to an orphanage at the age of three after both of her parents died during the civil war.

From BBC

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