veranda
Americannoun
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Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S. Also verandah. a large, open porch, usually roofed and partly enclosed, as by a railing, often extending across the front and sides of a house; gallery.
noun
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a porch or portico, sometimes partly enclosed, along the outside of a building
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a canopy sheltering pedestrians in a shopping street
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of veranda
1705–15; < Hindi baraṇḍā, barāmdā < Persian bar āmadaḥ coming out (unless the Hindi word is < Portuguese varanda, Spanish baranda railing, balustrade; cf. bar 1)
Compare meaning
How does veranda compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
If you're lazing around on a long, airy porch that runs along the outside of your house, you are on a veranda. The word veranda likely derived from the Portuguese word varanda, meaning "long balcony or terrace." Extending along the outside of a building, this architectural structure has a roof and usually opens up to the outside. A veranda is a common feature on houses at a beach resort or in other warm climates. They provide shade but still allow you to sit outside and enjoy the scenery. You might have a party on your veranda in the summer.
Vocabulary lists containing veranda
I Am Malala
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"Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" by Rudyard Kipling
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Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
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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.
Outside, residents can enjoy the warm New Orleans weather while lounging on the covered veranda or soaking in the saltwater pool.
From MarketWatch • Oct. 10, 2025
Here, you’ll come across the ruins of the White Point Hot Springs Hotel, where guests once lounged in hot sulfur spring-fed swimming pools and shimmied the Charleston on the veranda.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 16, 2024
The agency published a video in which it showed security officials detaining a man in jeans and a black shirt who was sitting at a veranda outside a restaurant in central Moscow.
From New York Times • Jun. 6, 2024
Listening to him on his veranda are four generations of his family.
From BBC • Feb. 23, 2024
I reckon Miss Love was pure starved for company, because when we got to the front veranda, she sat down in the swing, patted the cushion beside her, and said come sit a while.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
