hos‧pi‧tal S1 W1 /ˈhɒspɪtl $ ˈhɑː-/ noun [uncountable and countable]
[Date: 1200-1300; Language: Old French; Origin: Medieval Latin hospitale 'place to stay at', from Latin hospitalis 'of a guest', from hospes; ⇒ host¹]
a large building where sick or injured people receive medical treatment:
They are building a new hospital.
in hospital British English:
She visited him in hospital.
in the hospital American English:
Two people are in the hospital with serious burns.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

hospital
noun
ADJ. community, district, local | NHS, private | day, long-stay | general | children's, maternity, mental, psychiatric, etc. | teaching
VERB + HOSPITAL go into/to He's had to go into hospital rather suddenly.
rush sb to, take sb to | admit sb to, readmit sb to | stay in | come out of, leave She came out of hospital this morning.
discharge sb from
HOSPITAL + NOUN doctor, staff | inpatient, outpatient, patient | care, services, treatment | clinic, unit, ward | bed | admission, stay
PREP. at a/the ~ She works at the John Radcliffe Hospital.
in (a/the) ~ He is in hospital recovering from a heart operation. I used to work as a cleaner in a hospital.
to (a/the) ~ He's been taken to hospital for tests. We went to the hospital to visit my gran.
PHRASES admission to hospital, a stay in hospital

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

hospital

go to hospital British English, go to the hospital American English
The pain got worse and she had to go to the hospital.
be taken/rushed/airlifted to hospital British English, be taken/rushed/airlifted to the hospital American English
Three people were taken to hospital after a crash on the motorway.
be admitted to hospital British English, be admitted to the hospital American English
He was admitted to hospital suffering from chest pain.
leave/come out of hospital British English, leave/come out of the hospital American English
Her mother never left the hospital.
be discharged/released from hospital British English, be discharged/released from the hospital American English (=be allowed to leave a hospital because you are better)
It was several weeks before he was released from hospital.
a psychiatric hospital (also a mental hospital old-fashioned) (=for people with mental illnesses)
He was admitted to a secure psychiatric hospital.
a children’s hospital
an important children’s hospital
a maternity hospital British English (=for women having babies)
Many maternity hospitals have been forced to close.
hospital treatment/care
What do older people think of hospital care?
a hospital stay (=the period someone spends in hospital)
New surgical techniques mean a hospital stay of less than 48 hours.
a hospital bed
There is a shortage of hospital beds.
a hospital ward/room
nurses working on hospital wards

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

hospital
noun
1.
BAD: I've been in the hospital for the last five weeks.
GOOD: I've been in hospital for the last five weeks.

Usage Note:
See note at SCHOOL 1 (school)

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2.
BAD: I want to go and see my grandmother who is ill at hospital.
GOOD: I want to go and see my grandmother who is ill in hospital.
BAD: It gave me the opportunity to work at a hospital.
GOOD: It gave me the opportunity to work in a hospital.

Usage Note:
in (a) hospital (NOT at ): 'I didn't like being in hospital.'

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Common Errors ▲

hospital a large building where sick or injured people receive medical treatment:
He was taken by ambulance to the local hospital.
the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford
a mental hospital
medical center American English a large hospital, which often has many different departments, including areas for research:
a discovery by doctors at the New England Medical Center
clinic a place, often in a hospital, where medical treatment and advice is given to people who do not need to stay in a hospital:
a family-planning clinic (=which gives people help and advice about birth control)
a special clinic for people with drug and alcohol problems
hospice a special hospital for people who are dying:
They are hoping to raise funds to build a hospice for sick and dying children.
nursing home/old people's home (also home) a place where people who are old and ill can live and be looked after, by nurses:
She doesn't want to end up in a nursing home.
sanatorium a place where people recovering after a long illness were sent in the past, so that they could rest and receive special care:
He was sent to a sanatorium in the Swiss Alps.
A&E/casualty British English, emergency room/ER American English the part of a hospital where people who are injured or who need urgent treatment are brought:
A&E waiting times have gone down.
A 33-year-old man was brought to the emergency room in a coma.
operating theatre British English, operating room American English a room in a hospital where operations are done:
Mrs Barnett was in the operating theatre for 11 hours while the transplant was carried out.
intensive care the part of a hospital where people who are very seriously ill or badly injured are cared for:
Mr Dye is in intensive care with head injuries.
unit part of a hospital where a particular kind of treatment is carried out:
the burns unit
the fertility unit
ward a large room in a hospital where people who need medical treatment stay:
the women's ward
She works as a nurse on a busy hospital ward.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲