barn raising

American  

noun

1. (in rural areas) a party, usually providing food, drink, etc., for the purpose of assisting a neighbor to put up a new barn.

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Etymology

Origin of barn raising

An Americanism dating back to 1855–60

Example Sentences

On the first day, we were on the barn raising set, which is basically the focal point of the movie.

From Fox News • Jun. 20, 2021

According to Margy Vogt, who wrote an essay on the image for the museum’s 75th anniversary catalog, this barn raising gathered more than 200 community members — and it was a party.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 30, 2020

Area residents gathered at Eastern Mennonite School for a solar barn raising earlier this month to install 357 solar panels atop the school’s upper building, the largest K-12 solar array in the city.

From Washington Times • Oct. 25, 2020

Zumthor, in turn, called on them to come together as neighbors and build his design themselves, as in a latter-day barn raising.

From New York Times • Sep. 21, 2020

Pastor Schatz from the Lutheran church had recently organized a barn raising.

From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson