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yard

yard

773 1.0
An area of land next to a building, often fenced, used for animals, work or play
  • noun
  • /jɑrd/
: patio
  • The dog happily chased its ball around the spacious yard.
  • front yard
  • residential yard
  • yard waste

It it forces them into my neighbor's yard underground.

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Examples

  • Here we are walking through the yard as the green leaves reappear.

  • I point at a cat prowling the yard, and he stares at my finger.

    Academic text (2011)
  • We run around the yard, up and back and up and back.

  • Remember when I took over the yard after Dad died?

  • Oh, wow, that really made the yard look enormous.

  • Momma put us in the front yard and said, "You two wild things, fight it out here."

    Academic text (2015)
  • I saw somebody standing in Mr. Riddle's back yard.

  • Wow, your yard is the perfect size, and there's plenty of access from the back alley.

  • My mother has feeders around the yard, so sometimes when there's nothing better to do.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Then, abruptly, in the neighboring house across the yard, someone began tuning a violin.

    Fiction book (1990)

Synonyms

garden
vsyard
979 1.0

An area of land next to a house where people grow flowers or vegetables

is more general and also includes non-plant uses like storage or work
lawn
vsyard
465 1.0

An area of short grass in a garden or park

is any surrounding land used for work, storage, animals, or recreation
backyard
vsyard
349 1.0

An area of land behind a house used for play and gardening

is broader, covering areas around any building and varied practical uses
grounds
vsyard
124 2.0

The land around a building that belongs to it, often with gardens

is more general and can include simple functional spaces, not only landscaped land
courtyard
vsyard
108 2.2

An open area inside buildings, often like the space in a house or castle

is less architecturally enclosed and can be any adjacent outdoor space
plot of land
vsyard
12 3.0

A small piece of ground for growing plants or building on

is specifically adjacent to a building and used for varied local functions
farmyard
vsyard
4 1.7

An open area next to farm buildings where farmers keep animals and tools

is any nearby land used for animals, storage, work, or recreation
3 2.8

An area of land used for something, like a garden or park

is the nearby land around a building with common practical or leisure uses
dooryard
vsyard
  • Archaic
2 7.9

An area just outside a house door where people walk and plant things

is a general area next to or around a building for various uses
garth
vsyard
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A small garden next to a house or church

is broader in size and use, not limited to small enclosed gardens
curtilage
vsyard
  • Formal
1 9.9

The land around a house that belongs to it and is often enclosed

is similar but covers nearby land for many practical or recreational uses

Compounds

70 1.0

A piece of land in front of a house next to the street

65 3.4

A marked line on a football field showing how many yards the ball is from the nearest goal line

38 1.6

A sale outside a home where people sell used things

28 3.5

The main office of London's police detectives

11 4.2

A place where the military builds and fixes ships

5 2.1

An area of land at the side of a house used for a small garden or play

4 2.6

A measure of space equal to a cube one yard on each side, used for soil or gravel

3 1.8

A unit of area equal to a square one yard on each side

The main offices of the London police and their detectives

yard bird
  • Offensive
1 9.9

A new soldier who does only boring chores as punishment

1 3.8

A place with many train tracks where train engines and cars are kept and fixed

1 2.8

A marker on a football field showing the position of a yard line

1 1.7

A yard where chickens are kept

yard ape
  • Slang
1 9.9

A lively child who likes to climb and play noisy games

1 5.1

A fenced area where animals like sheep wait briefly before someone moves them

A historic navy shipyard in Boston where the warship Constitution is anchored

1 5.7

A person who works in a railway yard assembling or taking apart trains

topgallant yard
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A long horizontal pole high on a sailing ship that holds the sail above the topsail

royal yard
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A long horizontal pole high on a sailing ship mast that holds the highest sail

1 2.1

A person who cares for gardens and cuts grass

inn yard
  • Archaic
1 5.5

An open yard at an inn where people meet and tie horses

1 4.8

An area of land where people put rubbish

1 3.9

Cloth sold in lengths, usually measured in yards, for sewing and crafts

1 7.4

A place by train tracks where workers sort and attach freight cars

A historic Navy shipyard in Boston that is home to the warship Constitution

1 6.8

A rough grass that grows as a common yard weed with thin flower spikes

main yard
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A long pole across a ship with square sails that holds the main sail

1 3.6

A small fenced area where hens live

A long green bean with very long pods used as a vegetable

1 8.2

A long narrow workplace where people make strong lines for ships

1 1.8

A ruler exactly one yard long used to measure cloth and short distances

fore-yard
  • Specialized
9.9

A horizontal pole on a sailing ship that holds the sail at the front

top-gallant yard
  • Specialized
9.9

A long horizontal pole high on a sailing ship that holds the topgallant sail

yard bird
  • Slang
9.9

A person serving time in jail or prison

yard donkey
  • Specialized
9.9

A machine with an engine that pulls logs to a loading area

How Big

estate
751 4.2
compound
  • UK
238 6.0
yard
773 1.0
courtyard
108 2.2
garden
979 1.0
patio
102 1.8

Surface Forms

yard singular
yards plural

Etymology

Yard comes from an old English word geard meaning 'enclosure' or 'fenced space', and it is the same root as garden, so imagine a small kept area next to a house for animals or storage. That's why a yard today is the land next to a building, often enclosed.