barn

noun

ˈbärn How to pronounce barn (audio)
1
a
: a usually large building for the storage of farm products or feed and usually for the housing of farm animals or farm equipment
b
: an unusually large and usually bare building
… a great barn of a hotel …—W. A. White
2
: a large building for the housing of a fleet of vehicles (such as trolley cars or trucks)
barnlike
ˈbärn-ˌlīk How to pronounce barn (audio)
adjective
barny
ˈbär-nē How to pronounce barn (audio)
adjective

Examples of barn in a Sentence

They live in a big barn of a house.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The residence has seven bedrooms and 10 bathrooms in roughly 11,200 square feet, plus a guesthouse, gym, and barn. — Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 10 Aug. 2026 Most of them arrived because the game posted to their friends' feeds asking for help with a barn or a lost cow. — Jason Snyder, Forbes.com, 8 Aug. 2026 Yak skulls, tails and hair hang in a barn overseen by a furtive gray cat. — David Kelly, Los Angeles Times, 8 Aug. 2026 In 1997, the Moersch family purchased and relocated an Amish round barn from the cornfields of Indiana and rebuilt the structure, which eventually was unveiled as Round Barn Winery. — Philip Potempa, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for barn

Word History

Etymology

Middle English bern, from Old English bereærn, from bere barley + ærn house, store

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of barn was before the 12th century

Phrases Containing barn

Rhymes for barn

See All Rhymes for barn

Browse Nearby Words

barmy
barn
Barnabas
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Barn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/barn. Accessed 14 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

barn

noun
ˈbärn How to pronounce barn (audio)
: a building used chiefly for storing grain and hay and for housing farm animals or farm equipment

Medical Definition

barn

noun
ˈbärn How to pronounce barn (audio)
: a unit of area equal to 10−24 square centimeters that is used in nuclear physics for measuring cross section

More from Merriam-Webster on barn

Nglish: Translation of barn for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about barn

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of vacuous

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All