vara
An old Spanish unit of length about as long as a yard
- noun
- /ˈvɑːrə/
- Archaic
:
vara
- The field measured over fifty varas in length, making it suitable for grazing.
Examples
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Additional complications that are associated with this fracture include nonunion, coxa vara, premature physeal closure, and infection.
Academic text (2006) -
According to Cal's map, the treasure cave will be a hundred varas due west.
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In some regions, a vara is defined as approximately 33 inches.
Compounds
Surface Forms
Etymology
Vara comes from the Spanish word for a long 'rod' or 'stick' that people used to measure distance, so the name became a unit of length. That's why a vara is like a yard, but its exact size often changed from place to place.