premises

British  

/ ˈprɛmɪsɪz /

plural noun

1. a piece of land together with its buildings, esp considered as a place of business

2. law

   1. (in a deed, etc) the matters referred to previously; the aforesaid; the foregoing

   2. the introductory part of a grant, conveyance, etc

3. law (in the US) the part of a bill in equity that states the names of the parties, details of the plaintiff's claims, etc

---

Explanation

The premises of a property consist of the land and buildings on it, usually of a business or organization. If there are no dogs allowed on the premises of a school, you'll have to leave your furry friend at home. A game of hide-and-go-seek where you can’t leave the house will go a lot faster than one that permits hiding anywhere on the premises, including outdoors. Premises has another, unrelated meaning — it can also be the assumption or hypothesis from which a conclusion is drawn. The English writer Samuel Butler said, “Life is the art of drawing sufficient conclusions from insufficient premises.” Meaning, much of life is about guesswork.

Example Sentences

"If that were the test, then no licensed premises would be granted permissions."

From BBC • May 19, 2026

On Thursday, Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano said Dela Rosa had once again fled the premises, without disclosing his new location.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026

In the meantime, visitors may not know: Wi Spa has an “Aescape” AI-powered massage robot on its premises.

From Los Angeles Times • May 5, 2026

"Since March 2025, we have visited over 3,000 High Street premises suspected of criminal activity and arrested nearly 1,000 individuals," it said in a statement.

From BBC • Apr. 30, 2026

For Aristotle, the ideal science consisted of a chain of logical deductions from incontestable premises.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton