rancho

American  

[ran-choh, rahn-, rahn-chaw] / ˈræn tʃoʊ, ˈrɑn-, ˈrɑn tʃɔ /

noun

plural

ranchos

1. a ranch.

2. a hut or collection of huts for herders, laborers, or travelers.

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rancho British  

/ ˈrɑːntʃəʊ /

noun

1. a hut or group of huts for housing ranch workers

2. another word for ranch

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Etymology

Origin of rancho

An Americanism first recorded in 1800–10; from Latin American Spanish: “small farm, camp” ( Spanish: “camp”), from Old Spanish rancharse “to lodge, be billeted,” from Middle French (se) ranger “to be arranged, be installed”; range

Example Sentences

Tongva, Chumash and Cahuilla workers in California formed the backbone of rancho agriculture.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 30, 2025

He was leaving their rancho of La Cañada, Zacatecas for el Norte.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 10, 2025

As the eldest of four brothers, raised by parents from a small rancho in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, she was embedded in a culture where machismo ran deep.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 30, 2025

We all made it in a society that never gave us a handout and wanted us to fail, embracing it as ours even as we hung on to our rancho traditions.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 16, 2024

“Yes, señora. When the rancho broke up they put no more lime on the ’dobe, and the rains washed it down.”

From "The Red Pony" by John Steinbeck