barn

[bahrn]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR barn ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a building for storing hay, grain, etc., and often for housing livestock.

a very large garage for buses, trucks, etc.; carbarn.

verb (used with object)

to store (hay, grain, etc.) in a barn.

RELATED WORDS

shed, outbuilding

Nearby words

Origin of barn

before 950; Middle English bern, Old English berern (bere (see barley¹) + ern, ǣrn house, cognate with Old Frisian fīaern cowhouse, Old High German erin, Gothic razn, Old Norse rann house; cf. ransack, rest¹)

Related formsbarn·like, adjective

barn

[bahrn]

noun Physics.

a unit of nuclear cross section, equal to 10−24 square centimeter. Abbreviation: b

Origin of barn

First recorded in 1945–50; special use of barn¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for barn

He was born in a barn to penniless parents who were part of a people under occupation.
Jesus Wasn’t Born Rich. Think About It.|Gene Robinson|December 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
From the roof of the barn is a long loop of rope, through this the turkey is suspended by its legs.
Confessions of a Turkey Killer|Tom Sykes|November 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
There is an ancestral homestead, but it has a meth lab in the barn.
Book Bag: Gritty Stories From the Real Montana|Carrie La Seur|October 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Every spring and fall, the chicken coop in the barn must be cleaned.
What Did TJ Mean By “Pursuit of Happiness,” Anyway?|P. J. O’Rourke|June 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Also happy to get some fresh air (and a huge, aromatic cigar at a safe distance from the barn).
What Did TJ Mean By “Pursuit of Happiness,” Anyway?|P. J. O’Rourke|June 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The south wind and the new-born calf at the barn begin to sigh.
Remarks|Bill Nye
To drive him from his hiding-place, the barn was set on fire.
The Greater Republic|Charles Morris
I remember my younger brother once ran across a skunk like this and he had to live in the barn for two days.
The Go Ahead Boys in the Island Camp|Ross Kay
You must know that she had gnawed herself out of the case, which stood in the barn waiting to be unpacked.
The Old Willow Tree and Other Stories|Carl Ewald
Just as the two officers neared the barn the door was seen to slide on its roller.
Uncle Sam's Boys as Lieutenants|H. Irving Hancock

British Dictionary definitions for barn

barn

noun

a large farm outbuilding, used chiefly for storing hay, grain, etc, but also for housing livestock

US and Canadian a large shed for sheltering railroad cars, trucks, etc

any large building, esp an unattractive one

(modifier) relating to a system of poultry farming in which birds are allowed to move freely within a barnbarn eggs

Word Origin for barn

Old English beren, from bere barley + ærn room; see barley 1

noun

a unit of nuclear cross section equal to 10 – 28 square metreSymbol: b

Word Origin for barn

C20: from barn 1; so called because of the relatively large cross section

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

Word Origin and History for barn

barn

Old English bereærn "barn," literally "barley house," from bere "barley" (see barley) + aern "house," metathesized from *rann, *rasn (cf. Old Norse rann, Gothic razn "house," Old English rest "resting place;" sealtærn "saltworks").

Barley was not always the only crop grown as the data recovered at Bishopstone might suggest but it is always the most commonly represented, followed by wheat and then rye and oats. [C.J. Arnold, "An Archaeology of the Early Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms," 1988, p.36]

Another word for "barn" in Old English was beretun, "barley enclosure" (from tun "enclosure, house"), which accounts for the many Barton place names on the English map, and the common surname. Barn door used figuratively for "broad target" and "great size" since 1540s.

Idioms and Phrases with barn

barn

see can't hit the broad side of a barn; lock the barn door after the horse is stolen.

barn

noun

verb (used with object)

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RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of barn

barn

noun Physics.

Origin of barn

Examples from the Web for barn

barn

noun

Word Origin for barn

noun

Word Origin for barn

barn

barn