What does infirmary mean?
An infirmary is a designated place for treating people who are ill, injured, or in need of basic medical attention. Today, the word is especially common for the medical room in a school, college, workplace, or similar setting, where students or employees may rest, receive first aid, and be looked after until they can return home or continue their normal activities. The term can also have a more historical or formal use for a hospital ward or institution devoted to the sick, including military infirmaries. Infirmary comes from Latin infirmarium, a word derived from infirmus, meaning “not strong” or “weak,” which reflects its association with illness and physical weakness. The word is useful because it specifies a particular setting for medical care rather than simply referring to a hospital or clinic in general.
A place within a school, workplace, or other institution where sick or injured people receive medical care.
"A visit to the infirmary helped him recover from his asthma attack."
The modern use is usually a small medical room or facility serving an institution.
A hospital or ward for the sick, especially in a historical, military, or institutional context.
"The regiment established an infirmary near the battlefield."
This sense is now mainly historical, formal, or used in the names of older institutions.
The standard plural is “infirmaries,” with the ending changing from -y to -ies.
"The hospital has several infirmaries for students and staff."
From Latin infirmus, meaning “not strong,” the word preserves an old idea: the infirmary was where the sick were kept when they could not be strong enough to recover elsewhere.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does infirmary come from?
The English word infirmary entered Middle English in the late medieval period from Medieval Latin infirmarium, meaning “infirmary” or “hospital for the sick.” That form developed from Latin infirmus, meaning “not strong” or “weak.” The same root appears in related English words such as infirm and infirmity, while the Latin family also includes forms associated with firmness and strength. Over time, infirmary developed from a general term for a place housing or treating the sick to its modern sense of a medical facility within an institution.
Related word forms
How infirmary is actually used
In modern usage, infirmary most often means a medical room within a school or other institution. It is less common as a general term for a hospital, a use that is now chiefly historical.
Easily confused with infirmary
Infirm is an adjective meaning physically weak, elderly, or medically unwell, whereas an infirmary is a place where medical care is provided.