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home

[ hohm ]

/ hoʊm /

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See synonyms for home on Thesaurus.com

noun

a house, apartment, or other shelter that is the usual residence of a person, family, or household.

the place in which one's domestic affections are centered.

an institution for people who lack stable housing, who are sick or infirm, etc.: a nursing home;a home for those with dementia.

the dwelling place or retreat of an animal.

the place or region where something is native or most common.

any place of residence or refuge: a heavenly home.

a person's native place or own country.

a principal base of operations or activities: The new stadium will be the home of the local football team.

(in games) the destination or goal.

Baseball. home plate.

Lacrosse. one of three attack positions nearest the opposing goal.

adjective

of, relating to, or connected with one's home or country: home cooking;the rising home demand for gasoline.

principal or main: the corporation's home office.

reaching the mark aimed at: a home thrust.

Sports. played in a ball park, arena, or the like, that is or is assumed to be the center of operations of a team: The pitcher didn't lose a single home game all season.Compare away (def. 11).

adverb

to, toward, or at home: to go home.

deep; to the heart: The truth of the accusation struck home.

to the mark or point aimed at: He drove the point home.

Nautical.

into the position desired; perfectly or to the greatest possible extent: We radioed instructions to the crew, and the huge sails were sheeted home.
in the proper, stowed position: The anchor is home.
toward its vessel: to bring the anchor home.

verb (used without object), homed, hom·ing.

to navigate toward a point by means of coordinates other than those given by altitudes (often followed by on): This clever defensive technology prevented torpedoes from homing on the U-boat.

to go or return home: Bees have the ability to learn visual landmarks and use them when foraging and homing.

to have a home where specified; reside: God now homes in the hearts of His people.

verb (used with object), homed, hom·ing.

to provide with a home: After being microchipped and fully vaccinated, the puppy was homed with six weeks free insurance.

Computers.

to provide (a computer) with a network connection: Each subscriber must be homed to a node in the network.
to prepare (a 3D printer) for use by setting the horizontal and vertical limits for positioning the extruder before a printing task: Do not try to do anything with your printer until you home it.

to provide a display or storage space for; house: Adding lighting to the unit creates a stunning wall feature to home all your treasured possessions. The library homes a wide variety of resources for the avid gardener.

to direct, especially under control of an automatic aiming device, toward an airport, target, etc.: The guidance system homed the missile on a target that was radar-illuminated by the launch aircraft.

to bring or send home.

Verb Phrases

home in (on),

(of guided missiles, aircraft, etc.) to proceed, especially under control of an automatic aiming mechanism, toward a specified target, as a plane, missile, or location: The bomb homed in on the bridge.
to direct one’s attention or energies toward: The committee quickly homed in on the relevant details.

OTHER WORDS FOR home

1 abode, dwelling, habitation; domicile.

2 hearth, fireside.

See synonyms for home on Thesaurus.com

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Idioms about home

at home,

in one's own house or place of residence.
in one's own town or country.
prepared or willing to receive social visits: Tell him I'm not at home.We are always at home to her.
in a situation familiar to one; at ease: She has a way of making everyone feel at home.
well-informed; proficient: to be at home in the classics.
played in one's hometown or on one's own grounds: The Yankees played two games at home and one away.

bring home to, to make evident to; clarify or emphasize for: The irrevocability of her decision was brought home to her.

home and dry, British Informal. having safely achieved one's goal.

home free,

assured of finishing, accomplishing, succeeding, etc.: If we can finish more than half the work today, we'll be home free.
certain to be successfully finished, accomplished, secured, etc.: With most of the voters supporting it, the new law is home free.

write home about, to comment especially on; remark on (usually used in the negative): The town was nothing to write home about.His cooking is really something to write home about.

Origin of home

First recorded before 900; noun and adverb; Middle English hom, Old English hām; cognate with Dutch heim, Old Norse heimr, Danish hjem, Swedish hem, German Heim “home,” Gothic haims “village”; akin to haunt

synonym study for home

1. See house.

usage note for home

OTHER WORDS FROM home

min·i·home, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH home

home , house (see synonym study at house)

Words nearby home

homage, homager, homalographic, hombre, homburg, home, home aid, home-alone, home automation, home banking, home base

Other definitions for home (2 of 2)

Home

[ hyoom ]

/ hyum /

noun

Lord. Douglas-Home.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

MORE ABOUT HOME

What is a basic definition of home?

Home is a noun that refers to the place where a person or animal lives. Home can also mean a location where something is native or very common. Home is also used as an adverb to describe something that occurs to, toward, or at a home. Home has many other senses as a noun, adjective, and adverb.

The place where you live is your home. Animals also have homes. A nest is a bee’s home, for example.

Home is a synonym of the word house. However, home is often used to imply that a person is emotionally attached to the place they live and feels a sense of comfort there. While house can also refer to an empty building, home usually describes a building that is occupied.

Real-life examples: Houses, apartments, and condominiums are buildings that are used for homes. Animals make their homes in water, trees, caves, grass, underground, and elsewhere.
Used in a sentence: I invited my friends to a party at my home.

Home can also refer to a place where something is common or originates from.

Real-life examples: The United States is the home of baseball. Israel is home to many religious sites. Social media is the home of most of our favorite Internet memes.
Used in a sentence: Japan is the home of my heart.

As an adverb, home describes something that is happening at a home or happening to a home.

Real-life examples: When school is over, children go home. When people are sick, they might decide to stay home and not go to work. Military spouses often wait for their partners to return home.
Used in a sentence: She waited for her brother to come home before ordering pizza.

Where does home come from?

The first records of home come from before the 900s. It comes from the Old English word hām, both as a noun and adverb. The Old English word is related to words for home in other languages, such as the Dutch heim, the Old Norse heimr, and the German Heim.

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to home?

homelike (adjective)
minihome (noun)

What are some synonyms for home?

What are some words that share a root or word element with home?

What are some words that often get used in discussing home?

How is home used in real life?

Home is a common word that is most often used to refer to places where people live.

Sometimes I don't feel old but then I remember I used to access the internet via physical discs that were mailed to my home.

— Jesse McLaren (@McJesse) November 30, 2020

Tokushima is home to many sites of rich history and natural beauty. Check out our picks for the top tourist destinations on today's #JapanVirtualTour!

— Japan Consulate Miami (@JapanCons_Miami) October 28, 2020

Power walked home and made it with 8 minutes to spare 😅

— Sheepy (@ZsSheepy) November 29, 2020

Try using home!

Which of the following is NOT a synonym for home?

A. apartment
B. mansion
C. office
D. cabin

How to use home in a sentence

She was greeted by dozens of onlookers on the street outside the home.
Election live updates: Trump returns to Wisconsin; Biden to face live audience at town hall|Colby Itkowitz, Felicia Sonmez, John Wagner|September 17, 2020|Washington Post
Moreno on Wednesday night told the Washington Blade that he is at his home and safe.
Cuban authorities threaten to arrest LGBTQ activist, journalist|Michael K. Lavers|September 17, 2020|Washington Blade
We’re able to build the script in our own home by ourselves.
‘Antebellum’ explores truths of our ugly past|Brian T. Carney|September 16, 2020|Washington Blade
Streaming watch parties have outlasted states’ shelter-at-home orders.
How the future of TV and streaming has – and hasn’t – been reshaped so far by 2020|Tim Peterson|September 16, 2020|Digiday

Harris did best in vote-rich New Castle County, winning 37 percent of the vote there, and ran strongest near Newark, home to the University of Delaware.
The Trailer: The First State goes last|David Weigel|September 15, 2020|Washington Post
That officer fretting about his “stance,” we learn, is plagued by PTSD that cripples him both on the job and at home.
'Babylon' Review: The Dumb Lives of Trigger-Happy Cops|Melissa Leon|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
So, Islamized teaching sends girls back home for marriage and housework, and remains exclusively for boys.
Houellebecq’s Incendiary Novel Imagines France With a Muslim President|Pierre Assouline|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Meanwhile, almost exactly 30 years after the trial, the judge left his home to board a steamboat and was never heard from again.
New York’s Most Tragic Ghost Loves Minimalist Swedish Fashion|Nina Strochlic|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The FBI raided his home in 2000 with an affidavit questioning his use of $200,000 from his white supremacist fundraising.
The Price of Steve Scalise’s Silence|Jason Berry|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Scalise spoke briefly, adding little of substance, saying that the people back home know him best.
The Price of Steve Scalise’s Silence|Jason Berry|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It was with a feeling of relief on both sides that the arrival of Mr. Haggard, of the Home Office, was announced.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
In the entrance hall of the Savoy, where large and lonely porters were dozing, he learnt that she was at home.
Bella Donna|Robert Hichens
I've never had time to write home about it, for I felt that it required a dissertation in itself to do it justice.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
Now and then the boy who had bought Squinty, and who was taking him home, would look around at his pet in the slatted box.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum
"I suppose the man Alessandro has something he calls a home," said the Senora, regaining herself a little.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson

British Dictionary definitions for home (1 of 2)

home

/ (həʊm) /

noun

the place or a place where one liveshave you no home to go to?

a house or other dwelling

a family or other group living in a house or other place

a person's country, city, etc, esp viewed as a birthplace, a residence during one's early years, or a place dear to one

the environment or habitat of a person or animal

the place where something is invented, founded, or developedthe US is the home of baseball

a building or organization set up to care for orphans, the aged, etc
an informal name for a mental home

sport one's own groundthe match is at home

the objective towards which a player strives in certain sports
an area where a player is safe from attack

lacrosse

one of two positions of play nearest the opponents' goal
a player assigned to such a positioninside home

baseball another name for home plate

NZ informal, obsolete Britain, esp England

a home from home a place other than one's own home where one can be at ease

at home

in one's own home or country
at ease, as if at one's own home
giving an informal party at one's own home
British such a party

at home in, at home on or at home with familiar or conversant with

home and dry British informal definitely safe or successfulwe will not be home and dry until the votes have been counted Austral. and NZ equivalent: home and hosed

near home concerning one deeply

adjective (usually prenominal)

of, relating to, or involving one's home, country, etc; domestic

(of an activity) done in one's househome taping

effective or deadlya home thrust

sport relating to one's own grounda home game

US central; principalthe company's home office

adverb

to or at homeI'll be home tomorrow

to or on the point

to the fullest extenthammer the nail home

(of nautical gear) into or in the best or proper positionthe boom is home

bring home to

to make clear to
to place the blame on

come home nautical (of an anchor) to fail to hold

come home to to become absolutely clear to

nothing to write home about informal to be of no particular interestthe film was nothing to write home about

verb

(intr) (of birds and other animals) to return home accurately from a distance

(often foll by on or onto) to direct or be directed onto a point or target, esp by automatic navigational aids

to send or go home

to furnish with or have a home

(intr; often foll by in or in on) to be directed towards a goal, target, etc

Derived forms of home

homelike, adjective

Word Origin for home

Old English hām; related to Old Norse heimr, Gothic haims, Old High German heim, Dutch heem, Greek kōmi village

British Dictionary definitions for home (2 of 2)

Home

/ (hjuːm) /

noun

Baron See Home of the Hirsel

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with home

home

In addition to the idioms beginning with home

home free
home in on
home run
home truth

also see:

at home
bring home
bring home the bacon
chickens come home to roost
close to home

Drive Homeeat someone out of house and homemake oneself at homenobody homenothing to write home abouttill the cows come home.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.