barn

1
[ bahrn ]
See synonyms for barn on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a building for storing hay, grain, etc., and often for housing livestock.

  2. a very large garage for buses, trucks, etc.; carbarn.

verb (used with object)
  1. to store (hay, grain, etc.) in a barn.

Origin of barn

1
before 950; Middle English bern,Old English berern (bere (see barley1) + ern, ǣrn house, cognate with Old Frisian fīaern cowhouse, Old High German erin,Gothic razn,Old Norse rann house; cf. ransack, rest1)

Other words from barn

  • barnlike, adjective

Words Nearby barn

Other definitions for barn (2 of 2)

barn2
[ bahrn ]

nounPhysics.
  1. a unit of nuclear cross section, equal to 10−24 square centimeter. Abbreviation: b

Origin of barn

2
First recorded in 1945–50; special use of barn1

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use barn in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for barn (1 of 2)

barn1

/ (bɑːn) /


noun
  1. a large farm outbuilding, used chiefly for storing hay, grain, etc, but also for housing livestock

  2. US and Canadian a large shed for sheltering railroad cars, trucks, etc

  1. any large building, esp an unattractive one

  2. (modifier) relating to a system of poultry farming in which birds are allowed to move freely within a barn: barn eggs

Origin of barn

1
Old English beren, from bere barley + ærn room; see barley 1

British Dictionary definitions for barn (2 of 2)

barn2

/ (bɑːn) /


noun
  1. a unit of nuclear cross section equal to 10 28 square metre: Symbol: b

Origin of barn

2
C20: from barn 1; so called because of the relatively large cross section

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with barn

barn

see can't hit the broad side of a barn; lock the barn door after the horse is stolen.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.