lab·o·ra·to·ry
| \ ˈla-b(ə-)rə-ˌtȯr-ē
, sometimes ˈla-bər-ˌtȯr- or ˈla-bə-ˌtȯr- or lə-ˈbȯr-ə-ˌtȯr-, British usually lə-ˈbär-ə-t(ə-)rē
\
, sometimes ˈla-bər-ˌtȯr- or ˈla-bə-ˌtȯr- or lə-ˈbȯr-ə-ˌtȯr-, British usually lə-ˈbär-ə-t(ə-)rē
\
plural laboratories
Definition of laboratory
1a
: a place equipped for experimental study in a science or for testing and analysis
a research laboratory
broadly
: a place providing opportunity for experimentation, observation, or practice in a field of study
b
: a place like a laboratory for testing, experimentation, or practice
That area is a laboratory for cultivating the germ of terrorism.
2
: an academic period set aside for laboratory work
a course of study requiring two lectures and one laboratory per week
Examples of laboratory in a Sentence
experiments conducted in a modern laboratory
Recent Examples on the Web
Rubbia ran the experiment, called Underground Area 1 (or UA1), a bold and ambitious project at CERN laboratory near Geneva that sought traces of W and Z bosons in the chaos of high-energy particle collisions. — Quanta Magazine, "A Call for Courage as Physicists Confront Collider Dilemma," 7 Aug. 2019 In a opinions by the state’s top earthquake experts: James Faulds at the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology and Graham Kent at the seismological laboratory at the University of Nevada, Reno. — Washington Post, "Nevada: Feds should restudy seismic risk at nuke dump site," 18 July 2019 In June, a federal appeals court refused to dismiss a lawsuit against Kaczmarek filed by a man who was convicted on drug charges based on Farak’s tainted laboratory analysis. — Shawn Musgrave, BostonGlobe.com, "Three former prosecutors accused of misconduct in Amherst drug-lab scandal," 9 July 2019 Samples were submitted for laboratory analysis on the same day and screened for volatile organic compounds and gases typically affiliated with landfills. — Priscella Vega, latimes.com, "More air-quality testing planned at Edison High after mounting concerns about nearby defunct landfill," 8 July 2019 Those experts have a few hours to pull samples from 23 coastal locations between Slaughter Beach and Fenwick Island before dropping them off at a University of Delaware laboratory in Lewes. — Maddy Lauria, baltimoresun.com, "At Delaware's beaches, scientists test waters for signs of fecal bacteria," 9 June 2019 One of the difficulties with the laboratory analysis of a painting is obtaining samples of a sufficient size. — The Economist, "Researchers find a way to use minute samples to detect forged paintings," 8 June 2019 Those 100 or so skeletons were removed for laboratory analysis in the 1980s. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, "Extreme heat of Vesuvius eruption vaporized body fluids, exploded skulls," 9 Oct. 2018 The scientists used a portable, briefcase-size device that pulls air from the surface of the skin and collects VOCs in a filter for later laboratory analysis, using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. — Richard Conniff, Scientific American, "Is Malaria’s Peculiar Odor the Key to Its Conquest?," 14 May 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'laboratory.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for laboratory
laboratory
noun
English Language Learners Definition of laboratory
: a room or building with special equipment for doing scientific experiments and tests
See the full definition for laboratory in the English Language Learners Dictionary
laboratory
noun
lab·o·ra·to·ry
| \ ˈla-brə-ˌtȯr-ē
, ˈla-bə-rə-\
, ˈla-bə-rə-\
plural laboratories
Kids Definition of laboratory
: a room or building in which scientific experiments and tests are done
lab·o·ra·to·ry
| \ ˈlab-(ə-)rə-ˌtōr-ē, -ˌtȯr-, British usually lə-ˈbär-ə-t(ə-)rē\
plural laboratories
Medical Definition of laboratory
: a place equipped for experimental study in a science or for testing and analysis
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