The Only Use of
laboratory
in
1984, by Orwell
- In the vast laboratories of the Ministry of Peace, and in the experimental stations hidden in the Brazilian forests, or in the Australian desert, or on lost islands of the Antarctic, the teams of experts are indefatigably at work.
p. 194.1laboratories = workplaces where people do scientific or medical research
Definitions:
-
(1)
(laboratory) a workplace where people do scientific or medical research, or produce drugs or chemicals
or (as an adjective): related to such a place -
(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
Much more rarely, lab can be used as an abbreviated way of saying Labrador retriever. It is also a rare last name and may indicate someone's initials.