Area

• POS: Noun
• HYPHEN: ar=e=a

CIDE DICTIONARY

Area, n. [L. area a broad piece of level ground. Cf. Are, n.].

•  Any plane surface, as of the floor of a room or church, or of the ground within an inclosure; an open space in a building.  [1913 Webster]

  "The Alban lake . . . looks like the area of some vast amphitheater."  [1913 Webster]
•  The inclosed space on which a building stands.  [1913 Webster]
•  The sunken space or court, giving ingress and affording light to the basement of a building.  [1913 Webster]
•  An extent of surface; a tract of the earth's surface; a region; as, vast uncultivated areas.  [1913 Webster]
•  The superficial contents of any figure; the surface included within any given lines; superficial extent; as, the area of a square or a triangle.  [1913 Webster]
•  A spot or small marked space; as, the germinative area.  [1913 Webster]
•  Extent; scope; range; as, a wide area of thought.  [1913 Webster]

  "The largest area of human history and man's common nature."  [1913 Webster]

Dry area. See under Dry.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Area, n.
1 the extent or measure of a surface (over a large area; 3 acres in area; the area of a triangle).
2 a region or tract (the southern area).
3 a space allocated for a specific purpose (dining area; camping area).
4 the scope or range of an activity or study.
5 US a space below ground level in front of the basement of a building.
6 (prec. by the) Football = penalty area.

Derivative

areal adj.

Etymology

L, = vacant piece of level ground

THESAURUS

Area

abode, academic discipline, academic specialty, acreage, airspace, amplitude, applied science, arena, arrondissement, art, bag, bailiwick, bearings, beat, belt, bench mark, bigness, block, body, breadth, bulk, caliber, circuit, classical education, close, compass, concern, confines, continental shelf, continuum, core curriculum, corridor, country, course, course of study, court, courtyard, coverage, cup of tea, curriculum, demesne, department, department of knowledge, depth, diameter, dimension, dimensions, discipline, district, division, domain, elective, emplacement, emptiness, empty space, enclosure, environs, expanse, expansion, extension, extent, field, field of inquiry, field of study, forte, galactic space, gauge, general education, general studies, girth, greatness, ground, heartland, height, hinterland, hole, humanities, infinite space, interstellar space, land, largeness, latitude and longitude, length, liberal arts, lieu, limit, line, locale, locality, location, locus, long suit, lot, magnitude, main interest, major, manner, mass, measure, measurement, metier, milieu, minor, natural science, neighborhood, nothingness, offshore rights, ology, orb, orbit, outer space, parade, part, parts, pet subject, pinpoint, place, placement, plot, point, position, precinct, precincts, premises, proportion, proportions, proseminar, province, pure science, purlieus, pursuit, quadrivium, quarter, radius, range, reach, realm, refresher course, region, room, round, salient, scale, science, scientific education, scope, section, seminar, site, situation, situs, size, social science, soil, space, spatial extension, specialism, speciality, specialization, specialty, sphere, spot, spread, square, stead, stretch, strong point, study, style, subdiscipline, subject, superficial extension, surface, technical education, technicality, technicology, technics, technology, terrain, territory, thing, three-mile limit, tract, trivium, twelve-mile limit, type, vicinage, vicinity, vocation, void, volume, walk, way, weakness, whereabout, whereabouts, width, yard, zone

ROGET THESAURUS

Area

Region

N region, sphere, ground, soil, area, field, realm, hemisphere, quarter, district, beat, orb, circuit, circle, reservation, pale, compartment, department, clearing, (property) &c 780 (Government), 1 arena, precincts, enceinte, walk, march, patch, plot, parcel, inclosure, close, field, court, enclave, reserve, preserve, street, clime, climate, zone, meridian, latitude, biosphere, lithosphere, territorial, local, parochial, provincial, regional.

Place

N place, lieu, spot, point, dot, niche, nook, hole, pigeonhole, compartment, premises, precinct, station, area, courtyard, square, abode, locality, ins and outs, every hole and corner, somewhere, in some place, wherever it may be, here and there, in various places, passim.