sanctums
Private holy places
Sanctums is the plural of sanctum, a private or sacred place where one is free from intrusion.
The word often appears in inner sanctum, suggesting the most protected space within a larger area: Only senior partners were admitted to the inner sanctum.
A sanctum can be religious—a temple's holiest chamber—or secular: an artist's studio, a writer's study, anywhere retreat from the outside world is possible.
Sacred worship structure
- shrineSacred devotional place
- altarSacred ritual table
- holy of holiesMost sacred inner chamber
- tabernaclePortable sacred dwelling
chapel · mosque · synagogue · gurdwara · sacred space · prayer room · inner chamber · devotional
Sanctuary or withdrawal
- refugePlace of safety
- havenShelter from danger
- hideawaySecluded place of refuge
- denPrivate room or lair
study · studio · quiet room · escape · solitude · cocoon · bolt-hole · getaway
Animal-built shelter for young
- denPrivate room or lair
- burrowAnimal's dug dwelling
- lairAnimal's hidden dwelling
- habitatOrganism's natural environment
refuge · roosting · breeding ground · territory · preserve · protected area · conservation · nesting site
Corporate decision venue
- executive suiteSenior management's office space
- inner circleExclusive group of confidants
- headquartersCentral command location
- war roomStrategic planning headquarters
chambers · private office · closed door · exclusive · restricted · confidential · power center · elite
temple
Sacred worship structure
- shrineSacred devotional place
- altarSacred ritual table
- holy of holiesMost sacred inner chamber
tabernacle · chapel · mosque · synagogue · gurdwara · sacred space · prayer room · inner chamber · devotional · consecrated
retreat
Sanctuary or withdrawal
den · study · studio · quiet room · escape · solitude · cocoon · bolt-hole · getaway · man cave
nest
Animal-built shelter for young
habitat · refuge · roosting · breeding ground · territory · preserve · protected area · conservation · nesting site · colony
boardroom
Corporate decision venue
- executive suiteSenior management's office space
- inner circleExclusive group of confidants
- headquartersCentral command location
war room · chambers · private office · closed door · exclusive · restricted · confidential · power center · elite · privileged
- secret societiesFreemasons, Illuminati, secret society, secret societies, Masons
sanctumspublic squares
Open civic gathering areas
public spaces · commons · thoroughfares · marketplaces · public forums
sanctumsdens of iniquity
Places of vice
hellholes · cesspools · corruption · common ground · brothels
sanctumsdanger zones
Locations where harm threatens
war zones · no man's land · killing fields · battlegrounds · wastelands
- inner sanctumInnermost private place
- bird sanctuaryProtected area for avians
- wildlife sanctuaryProtected area for animals
- sanctuary cityJurisdiction shielding unauthorized immigrants
- elephant sanctuaryProtected land for pachyderms
- sanctuary citiesMunicipalities limiting immigration enforcement cooperation