Area - Definitions from Dictionary.com

10 results for: Area

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

ar·e·a

Audio Help [air-ee-uh] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	any particular extent of space or surface; part: the dark areas in the painting; the dusty area of the room.

2.	a geographical region; tract: the Chicago area; the unsettled areas along the frontier.

3.	any section reserved for a specific function: the business area of a town; the dining area of a house.

4.	extent, range, or scope: inquiries that embrace the whole area of science.

5.	field of study, or a branch of a field of study: Related areas of inquiry often reflect borrowed notions.

6.	a piece of unoccupied ground; an open space.

7.	the space or site on which a building stands; the yard attached to or surrounding a house.

8.	British. areaway (def. 1).

9.	the quantitative measure of a plane or curved surface; two-dimensional extent.

10.	Anatomy. a zone of the cerebral cortex having a specific function: The damage to Broca's area affected his speech.

[Origin: 1530–40; < L ārea vacant piece of level ground, open space in a town, threshing floor; perh. akin to ārére to be dry. See arid

]

—Related forms

ar·e·al, adjective

ar·e·al·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Area

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

ar·e·a Audio Help (âr'ē-ə) Pronunciation Key

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n.

A roughly bounded part of the space on a surface; a region: a farming area; the New York area.
A surface, especially an open, unoccupied piece of ground: a landing area; a playing area.
A distinct part or section, as of a building, set aside for a specific function: a storage area in the basement.
A division of experience, activity, or knowledge; a field: studies in the area of finance; a job in the health-care area.
An open, sunken space next to a building; an areaway.
Abbr. A The extent of a planar region or of the surface of a solid measured in square units.
Computer Science A section of storage set aside for a particular purpose.

[Latin ārea, open space; possibly akin to ārēre, to be dry; see arid.]

ar'e·al adj., ar'e·al·ly adv.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
area

1538, "vacant piece of ground," from L. area "level ground, open space," of uncertain origin. Perhaps related to arere "to become dry," on notion of a burned clearing or dry, bare space. The generic sense of "amount of surface (whether open or not) contained within any set of limits" is from 1845. Area code in N.Amer. telephone systems is attested from 1961.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

area
noun
1.	a particular geographical region of indefinite boundary (usually serving some special purpose or distinguished by its people or culture or geography); "it was a mountainous area"; "Bible country"
2.	a subject of study; "it was his area of specialization"; "areas of interest include..."
3.	a part of an animal that has a special function or is supplied by a given artery or nerve; "in the abdominal region"
4.	a particular environment or walk of life; "his social sphere is limited"; "it was a closed area of employment"; "he's out of my orbit" [syn: sphere]
5.	a part of a structure having some specific characteristic or function; "the spacious cooking area provided plenty of room for servants"
6.	the extent of a 2-dimensional surface enclosed within a boundary; "the area of a rectangle"; "it was about 500 square feet in area"

American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms - Cite This Source - Share This

area

see gray area.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
area1 [ˈeəriə] noun

the extent or size of a flat surface
Example: This garden is twelve square metres in area.

Arabic:	مَساحَه
Chinese (Simplified):	面积
Chinese (Traditional):	面積
Czech:	rozloha, výměra, plocha
Danish:	areal
Dutch:	oppervlakte
Estonian:	pindala
Finnish:	pinta-ala
French:	aire, superficie
German:	die Fläche
Greek:	εμβαδόν
Hungarian:	terület
Icelandic:	flatarmál
Indonesian:	luas tanah
Italian:	area, superficie

Japanese:	面積
Korean:	면적
Latvian:	laukums; platība
Lithuanian:	plotas
Norwegian:	areal, flateinnhold
Polish:	powierzchnia
Portuguese (Brazil):	área, superfície
Portuguese (Portugal):	área
Romanian:	arie, suprafaţă
Russian:	площадь
Slovak:	rozloha, výmera, plocha
Slovenian:	površina
Spanish:	área, superficie
Swedish:	area, areal, yta
Turkish:	alan

area2 [ˈeəriə] noun

a place; part (of a town etc)
Example: Do you live in this area?

Arabic:	مَنْطِقَه
Chinese (Simplified):	地区
Chinese (Traditional):	地區
Czech:	oblast, zóna, území
Danish:	område
Dutch:	gebied, buurt
Estonian:	piirkond
Finnish:	alue
French:	secteur, quartier
German:	die Gegend
Greek:	περιοχή
Hungarian:	térség
Icelandic:	svæði
Indonesian:	bagian tempat
Italian:	area, zona

Japanese:	地域
Korean:	지역
Latvian:	rajons; zona; apgabals
Lithuanian:	vietovė, dalis, rajonas
Norwegian:	område
Polish:	okolica, teren, rejon
Portuguese (Brazil):	área, bairro
Portuguese (Portugal):	área
Romanian:	zonă, regiune; cartier
Russian:	район
Slovak:	oblasť, štvrť
Slovenian:	predel
Spanish:	zona
Swedish:	område
Turkish:	bölge

The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

area Audio Help (âr'ē-ə) Pronunciation Key
The extent of a surface or plane figure as measured in square units.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Area

Ae"rie\ (?; 277), n. [OE. aire, eire, air, nest, also origin, descent, OF. aire, LL. area, aera, nest of a bird of prey, perh. fr. L. area an open space (for birds of prey like to build their nests on flat and open spaces on the top of high rocks). Cf. Area.] The nest of a bird of prey, as of an eagle or hawk; also a brood of such birds; eyrie. --Shak. Also fig.: A human residence or resting place perched like an eagle's nest.

Acronym Finder - Cite This Source - Share This

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