yard

¹ American  

[yahrd] / yɑrd /

noun

1. a common unit of linear measure in English-speaking countries, equal to 3 feet or 36 inches, and equivalent to 0.9144 meter.

2. Nautical. a long spar, supported more or less at its center, to which the head of a square sail, lateen sail, or lugsail is bent.

3. yard-of-ale.

4. Informal. a large quantity or extent.

5. Slang. one hundred or, usually, one thousand dollars.

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idioms

1. the whole nine yards,

   1. everything that is pertinent, appropriate, or available.

   2. in all ways; in every respect; all the way.

      If you want to run for mayor, I'll be with you the whole nine yards.

yard ² American  

[yahrd] / yɑrd /

noun

1. the ground that immediately adjoins or surrounds a house, public building, or other structure.

2. an enclosed area outdoors, often paved and surrounded by or adjacent to a building; court.

3. ballpark.

   It’s been a long road trip for the Mariners, and they’ll be glad to get back to their own yard on Tuesday.

4. an outdoor enclosure designed for the exercise of students, inmates, etc..

   a prison yard.

5. an outdoor space surrounded by a group of buildings, as on a college campus.

6. a pen or other enclosure for livestock.

7. an enclosure within which any work or business is carried on (often used in combination).

   navy yard; a brickyard.

8. an outside area used for storage, assembly, or the like.

9. Railroads. a system of parallel tracks, crossovers, switches, etc., where cars are switched and made up into trains and where cars, locomotives, and other rolling stock are kept when not in use or when awaiting repairs.

10. a piece of ground set aside for cultivation; garden; field.

11. the winter pasture or browsing ground of moose and deer.

12. British. the Yard, Scotland Yard.

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verb (used with object)

1. to put into, enclose, or store in a yard.

idioms

1. go yard, to hit a home run.

   It looks as if he may go yard with this one—and he does, just inches from the foul pole!

yard ¹ British  

/ jɑːd /

noun

1.  yd.  a unit of length equal to 3 feet and defined in 1963 as exactly 0.9144 metre

2. a cylindrical wooden or hollow metal spar, tapered at the ends, slung from a mast of a square-rigged or lateen-rigged vessel and used for suspending a sail

3. short for yardstick

4. informal to make a great effort to achieve an end

5. informal everything that is required; the whole thing

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Yard ² British  

/ jɑːd /

noun

1. informal short for Scotland Yard

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yard ³ British  

/ jɑːd /

noun

1. a piece of enclosed ground, usually either paved or laid with concrete and often adjoining or surrounded by a building or buildings

2. 1. an enclosed or open area used for some commercial activity, for storage, etc

      a railway yard

   2. ( in combination )

      a brickyard

      a shipyard

3. a US and Canadian word for garden

4. an area having a network of railway tracks and sidings, used for storing rolling stock, making up trains, etc

5. the winter pasture of deer, moose, and similar animals

6. an enclosed area used to draw off part of a herd, etc

7. short for saleyard stockyard

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verb

1. to draft (animals), esp to a saleyard

yard Scientific  

/ yärd /

1. A unit of length in the US Customary System equal to 3 feet or 36 inches (0.91 meter).

2. See Table at measurement

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yard More Idioms  

1. see all wool and a yard wide; in one's own back yard; whole nine yards.

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Etymology

Origin of yard¹

First recorded before 950; Middle English yerd(e), yard(e) “stick, pole, rod,” Old English gird, gierd, gerd “bough, staff, rod”; cognate with Dutch gard, German Gerte “rod, twig”

Origin of yard²

First recorded before 900; Middle English yerd(e), yard(e), Old English geard “enclosure”; cognate with Dutch gaard “garden,” Old Norse garthr “yard,” Gothic gards “house,” Latin hortus “garden,” Greek chórtos “enclosure, court,” Old Irish gort “field,” Slavic (Polish) gród “castle, town”; akin to garden, garth ( def. )

Example Sentences

After the work was completed, they received a $1,596 rebate for removing 798 square feet of turf in the 2,000-square-foot yard.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

At that moment, I thought, “Man, if only I’d been cleaning that yard instead, I’d be 5 pounds richer right now.”

From MarketWatch • Mar. 30, 2026

The group came together at Sedalia, Mo., high school, scrounged up money and bought a caboose from a local salvage yard.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 23, 2026

Stacey commended Brayen's school for its handling of his allergies - pupils wash their hands before and after lunch, and Brayen heads straight to the yard after eating.

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026

On fire, the car skidded across the patio and over the slate walk, singeing the grass as it wheeled and bounced across the yard.

From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott

Related Words

• backyard
• courtyard
• garden
• grass
• lawn
• lot
• patch
• patio
• playground