orphanage
/ˈɔːfənɪdʒ/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈɔːrfənɪdʒ/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈȯr-fə-nij ˈȯrf-nij/ (ame, mw)
orphanage — noun
- orphanagesingular
- orphanagesplural
1. a place where children who have no parents, or whose parents cannot look after t
a place where children who have no parents, or whose parents cannot look after them, live together and are cared for by adults
Mrs. Chen has worked as a cook at the Green Street orphanage for eleven years.
orphanage + location modifier (on Green Street)
The orphanage received a large donation from a local charity after the TV news report.
orphanage as subject receiving donation
Volunteers visit the orphanage every weekend to play games with the children.
- children's home
a more modern, less stigmatised term for the same type of institution
- founding hospital
archaic term for a home for abandoned infants; very rare in modern English
文法句型
(article) + orphanage + (location/time modifier)
用法筆記
Orphanage is a countable noun — you can say 'an orphanage', 'the orphanage', or 'two orphanages'. In modern usage, terms like 'children's home' or 'care home' are sometimes preferred to avoid the negative associations of the word 'orphan'.
常見錯誤
2. the situation of having lost both parents and having no adult relative who can r
the situation of having lost both parents and having no adult relative who can raise you
A novel follows a girl who faces orphanage after an illness kills both her parents.
orphanage (uncountable) as a condition/state
The historian's paper documents the harsh reality of orphanage in nineteenth-century London.
collocation: documents … the reality of orphanage
- orphanhood
the modern, clearer term for the same concept; more commonly used in sociology and formal writing
文法句型
(possessive/determiner) + orphanage
用法筆記
Rare in everyday conversation — speakers use 'the state of being an orphan' or 'orphanhood' instead. You will most often encounter this sense in formal writing, literature, or historical documents.