sanctuary

noun

Etymology: From Middle English seyntuarie, from Old French saintuaire, from Late Latin sanctuarium (“a sacred place, a shrine, a private cabinet, in Medieval Latin also temple, church, churchyard, cemetery, right of asylum”), from Latin sanctus (“holy, sacred”); see saint.

1. A place of safety, refuge, or protection.

   “My car is a sanctuary, where none can disturb me except for people who cut me off.”

   “She saw him, even as she had last gazed upon him, pale, cold, and awful; but still he was there. The coffin was to her like a shrine; all that she held most dear and most precious was within its dark and silent sanctuary.”

2. An area set aside for protection.

   “The bird sanctuary has strict restrictions on visitors so the birds aren't disturbed.”

3. A state of being protected, asylum.

   “The government granted sanctuary to the defector, protecting him from his former government.”

4. The consecrated (or sacred) area of a church or temple around its tabernacle or altar.

   “Near-synonym: chancel (broadly synonymous)”