ˈhɔspɪtl n. 1 an
institution providing medical and surgical treatment and
nursing care for ill or
injured people. 2
hist. a a
hospice. b an
establishment of
the Knights Hospitallers. 3
Law a
charitable institution (also in
proper names, e.g. Christ's Hospital). øhospital corners a
way of
tucking in sheets, used by nurses. hospital
fever a kind of
typhus formerly prevalent in crowded hospitals. hospital
ship a ship to
receive sick and wounded seamen, or to
take sick and wounded soldiers
home. hospital
train a train
taking wounded soldiers
from a
battlefield. [ME f. OF f. med.L hospitale neut. of L hospitalis (adj.) (as HOST(2))]