inn
noun
a commercial establishment that provides lodging, food, etc., for the public, especially travelers; small hotel.
inn
1 American
[in]
/ ɪn /
noun
-
inns
plural
-
a commercial establishment that provides lodging, food, etc., for the public, especially travelers; small hotel.
- Synonyms:
- hostelry
-
a tavern.
-
(initial capital letter)
-
any of several buildings in London formerly used as places of residence for students, especially law students.
-
a legal society occupying such a building.
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Inn
2
American
[in]
/ ɪn /
noun
inn
1
British
/ ɪn /
noun
-
a pub or small hotel providing food and accommodation
-
(formerly, in England) a college or hall of residence for students, esp of law, now only in the names of such institutions as the Inns of Court
Inn
2
British
/ ɪn /
noun
Synonym Usage
See hotel.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of inn
First recorded before 1000; Middle English, Old English in(n) “house”; akin to Old Norse inni (adverb) “within, in the house”
Explanation
An inn is a place to stay while you're on vacation or on the road. Inns are usually smaller and more charming than hotels, but they serve the same purpose: to give you a place to rest your weary head as you travel. Some inns are more charming versions of hotels, while others use the word inn simply to make them sound more appealing than a motel. The original meaning of inn was "lodging and food for travelers," although today some inns don't have a restaurant or bar attached. If you own or manage an inn, you're an "innkeeper." Inn comes from the Old English inne, "inside or within."
Vocabulary lists containing inn
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It follows years of controversy about what to do with the 17th-Century former inn, where Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler was born in April 1889.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
The inn has reopened its snack bar for the first time since early 2023, and management is investing in capital upgrades and staging live music on weekends throughout the summer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 4, 2026
He had just picked me up from Casa Rural Cieza de León, a charming inn in Llerena, my base camp 90 minutes north of Seville.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 30, 2026
In Great Barrington, browse home goods at One Mercantile and Barrington Outfitters before dinner at Prairie Whale or the Old Inn on the Green, a candlelit Berkshires institution inside an 18th-century inn.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026
Unlike the rooms at the inn, this one was furnished with many chairs and tables instead of beds.
From "Ralph S. Mouse" by Beverly Cleary
Mia St Hilaire, who had a tree nut allergy, suffered an anaphylactic shock and died after she drank a Twix milkshake at the Pop Inn Cafe in Bermondsey, south-east London, in August 2023.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
He is also said to have paid $20 million for the Casa Malibu Inn in 2007, 10 years before he snapped up another oceanfront estate for a reported $48 million.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026
For over 30 years, the Ship Inn has fielded a team to take on visitors from across the U.K.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
The Post Ranch Inn is set to reopen on Wednesday and was “under no imminent threat,” the hotel said on Instagram.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026
I had spent the day wearily over books, and, simply to keep my mind occupied, went over some of the matters I had been examining at Lincoln’s Inn.
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
Higher room rates did little to dull demand for oceanside resorts, exclusive mountaintop inns and city-center grand hotels.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 11, 2025
In the midst of this waits Moonstone Beach, often strewn with driftwood, and Moonstone Beach Drive, which is lined by about a dozen inns and boutique hotels.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 1, 2025
The group alternates between pubs in Sheffield and Rotherham to account for the geographical spread of the friendship group, but they have tried to remain loyal to their inns of choice.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2024
There are a few cafes and inns, but no car rental shops, gas stations or public transportation.
From Seattle Times ● May 24, 2024
The road was well trafficked, and at night for their comfort there were rude inns to be found.
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
