repository

[ ri-poz-i-tawr-ee ]

noun

, plural re·pos·i·tor·ies.

1. a receptacle or place where things are deposited, stored, or offered for sale:

   a repository for discarded clothing.

   Synonyms: depository, storehouse, depot

2. an abundant source or supply; storehouse:

   a repository of information.

3. a person to whom something is entrusted or confided.
4. a burial place; sepulcher.
5. alsocalledcomma Informal, re·po [ree, -poh]. Computers. a collection of stored data or software, or the place where it is stored, often a proprietary site in the cloud:

   The company hosts a cloud-based repository to help software developers store, track, and manage changes to their code.

6. Chiefly British. warehouse.

repository

/ rɪˈpɒzɪtərɪ; -trɪ /

noun

1. a place or container in which things can be stored for safety
2. a place where things are kept for exhibition; museum
3. a place where commodities are kept before being sold; warehouse
4. a place of burial; sepulchre
5. a receptacle containing the relics of the dead
6. a person to whom a secret is entrusted; confidant

Word History and Origins

Origin of repository¹

1475–85; < Latin repositōrium that in which anything is placed; reposit, -tory ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of repository¹

C15: from Latin repositōrium , from repōnere to place

Example Sentences

Because of his omnipresence in Hollywood, Jones became a repository of gossip and anecdotes.

From Salon

They’re repositories of billions of articles, software lines and music or art made by humans.

From Los Angeles Times

The demand comes as Israel launches another major offensive in northern Gaza, where airstrikes in recent days have hit a school, refugee camp and a food repository.

From Los Angeles Times

“A lot of the usual repositories of information have not yielded anything notable in terms of motive or ideology,” FBI director Christopher Wray told the AP.

From Salon

A 2016 GAO report found that the ATF’s National Tracing Center has to consult its repository of “‘out-of-business records” in more than one-third of trace requests involving an entity that has gone out of business.

From Salon

Related Words

• archive
• depository
• storehouse