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Synonyms

orchard

American  
[awr-cherd] / ˈɔr tʃərd /

noun

orchards plural
  1. an area of land devoted to the cultivation of fruit or nut trees.

  2. a group or collection of such trees.


orchard British  
/ ˈɔːtʃəd /

noun

  1. an area of land devoted to the cultivation of fruit trees

  2. a collection of fruit trees especially cultivated

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of orchard

before 900; Middle English orch ( i ) ard, Old English orceard; replacing ortyard, Middle English ortyerd, Old English ortigeard (compare Gothic aurtigards garden), equivalent to ort- (combining form akin to wort 2; later identified with Latin hortus garden) + geard yard 2

Explanation

An orchard is a tree garden. If you visit New England in autumn, make sure to stop by a local apple orchard and pick a few baskets to take home. From the Old English orceard blossomed our modern-day spelling of orchard, a noun meaning “fruit farm.” But you can also use the word figuratively to refer to something filled with treats or precious content. The US Congregational minister, Henry Ward Beecher, was famous for having proclaimed, “A book is a garden, an orchard, a storehouse, a party, a company by the way, a counselor, a multitude of counselors.”

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Vocabulary lists containing orchard

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Those were partially offset by increases in the Sun Cruiser, Angry Orchard, and Dogfish Head brands, the company said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 30, 2026

Tennessee Republican Party Chair Scott Golden offered this warning to party faithful last week at the Cumberland County Lincoln Day Dinner in the tiny town of Crab Orchard.

From BBC • Nov. 25, 2025

It’s the reason that newly built neighborhoods such as Orchard Hills in Irvine require higher fireproofing standards for homes on the outer rim of the community.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 12, 2025

Authorities say the suspect approached residences on the 1100 block of 28th Street and the 2600 block of Orchard Avenue, claiming he was there to fix a water leak.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 8, 2025

Not long ago in a large university town in California, on a street called Orchard Avenue, a strange old man ran a dusty shabby store.

From "The Egypt Game" by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

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