hospice

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. A shelter or lodging for travelers, pilgrims, foundlings, or the destitute, especially one maintained by a monastic order.
2. n. A program that provides palliative care and attends to the emotional and spiritual needs of terminally ill patients at an inpatient facility or at the patient's home.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. A house of entertainment and refuge for strangers; especially, such an establishment kept by monks on some passes in the Alps to give shelter and aid to travelers. Originally they were probably for pilgrims on the journey to Rome. The best-known hospice is that of the Great St. Bernard.

Wiktionary

1. n. uncountable The provision of palliative care for terminally ill patients, either at a specialized facility or at a residence, and support for the family, typically refraining from taking extraordinary measures to prolong life.
2. n. countable A specialized facility or organization offering palliative care for the terminally ill.
3. n. countable, dated A lodging for pilgrims or the destitute, normally provided by a monastic order.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. A convent or monastery which is also a place of refuge or entertainment for travelers on some difficult road or pass, as in the Alps. Bernard.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. a lodging for travelers (especially one kept by a monastic order)
2. n. a program of medical and emotional care for the terminally ill