barracks

British  

/ ˈbærəks /

plural noun

1. a building or group of buildings used to accommodate military personnel

2. any large building used for housing people, esp temporarily

3. a large and bleak building

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Etymology

Origin of barracks

C17: from French baraque , from Old Catalan barraca hut, of uncertain origin

Example Sentences

I spoke to sources who have worked in a defense capacity, and they said most likely this was human error—that it’s right next to a barracks and it could have been an error in combat.

From Slate • Mar. 3, 2026

Eventually, it failed, after the young king addressed Spaniards - and the armed forces - via a televised message, expressing his opposition to the rebels and ordering all military to remain in their barracks.

From BBC • Feb. 25, 2026

The improvised prison pens—everything from old army barracks and training camps, barns and fairgrounds, derelict cotton warehouses and tobacco factories—were emptied out.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 20, 2026

The family of an 18-year-old soldier who died in his barracks nine days after escorting Queen Elizabeth II's coffin said his regiment needed to take "better care of the soldiers".

From BBC • Feb. 18, 2026

We marched along a path between twisted rolls of barbed wire and through a wide gate into a compound of low tin-roofed barracks.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom