are

¹ American  

[ahr, er] / ɑr, ər /

verb

1. present indicative plural and 2nd person singular of be.

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are ² American  

[air, ahr] / ɛər, ɑr /

noun

1. a measure of surface area: 1 are is equal to 1/100 (0.01) of a hectare (100 square meters or 119.6 square yards). a

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are ¹ British  

/ ɑː, ə /

verb

1. the plural form of the present tense (indicative mood) of the verb `be' and the singular form used with you

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are ² British  

/ ɑː /

noun

1.  a.  a unit of area equal to 100 sq metres or 119.599 sq yards; one hundredth of a hectare

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Etymology

Origin of are¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English aren, are, arn, Old English (Northumbrian) aron; cognate with Old Norse eru, 3rd person plural; replacing Old English bēoth, sind; cf. art ²

Origin of are²

First recorded in 1810–20; from French, from Latin ārea “vacant piece of level ground, open space in a town, threshing floor”; see area

Explanation

Are is the plural of "is" and "am," a form of the most common verb "be." He is going, but we are going. Are is also used with you, as in, "Are you going to the movies?" In English, the forms of be break down like this: "I am; you are; he is; we are; they are; you (more than one of you) are." Are, of course, is only used when you are talking about things that are happening now. When they already happened, the word is were: we are here now, but we were there yesterday. Are is also a metric measurement equal to 100 square meters, but the unit is rarely used these days.

Example Sentences

The CCC stresses that reducing carbon emissions is essential to limit climate change, but it says that further consequences for the UK are inevitable.

From BBC • May 19, 2026

But the committee's strongest words are for the threat of extreme heat, which it says is the greatest health risk from climate change facing the UK.

From BBC • May 19, 2026

The villages are towns now and the towns are cities.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 24, 2000

Friendships are forged in combat that are closer than brothers, built around a mantra that says no Marine is ever abandoned; we bring out our dead, our wounded, our shattered lives.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 24, 2000

She could just stay in the house—her parents are gone on a weekend getaway to Kansas City and they’d never know—but the rules have been drilled into her since childhood.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith