plural homes
1
a
: one's place of residence : domicile
has been away from home for two weeks
a place to call home
b
: house
several homes for sale in the area
2
: the social unit formed by a family living together
trying to make a good home for their children
comes from a loving home
3
a
: a familiar or usual setting : congenial environment
also : the focus of one's domestic attention
home is where the heart is
b
: habitat
the home of the kangaroo
The island is home to many species of birds.
4
a
: a place of origin
salmon returning to their home to spawn
also : one's own country
having troubles at home and abroad
b
: headquarters sense 2
home of the dance company
5
: an establishment providing residence and care for people with special needs
homes for the elderly
6
: the objective in various games
especially : home plate

home

2 of 4

adverb

1
: to or at one's place of residence or home (see home entry 1 sense 1a)
told the dog to go home
stayed home all day
2
a
: to a final, closed, or ultimate position
drive a nail home
b
: to or at an ultimate objective (such as a goal or finish line)
fired the puck home
3
: to a vital sensitive core
the truth struck home

home

3 of 4

adjective

1
: of, relating to, or being a place of residence, place of origin, or base of operations
the company's home office
2
: prepared, done, or designed for use in a home (see home entry 1)
home remedies
home cooking
a home entertainment system
3
: operating or occurring in an area that is a headquarters or base of operations
the home team
home games

home

4 of 4

verb

homed; homing

intransitive verb

1
: to go or return to one's place of residence or origin : to go or return home (see home entry 1)
let us home
2
of an animal : to return accurately to one's native area of place of birth or origin from a distance : to return home
The salmon will home to spawn.
3
: to move to or toward an objective by following a signal or landmark
usually used with on or in
missiles homing in on a target
mariners … sought the dark spires of Oakland's redwoods to home on J. W. Noble
4
: to proceed or direct attention toward an objective
science is homing in on the mysterious human process Sam Glucksberg

transitive verb

: to send to or provide with a home
hidden pools and much wider creeks each of which homed its cranes I. L. Idriess
Phrases
at home
1
: relaxed and comfortable : at ease
felt completely at home on the stage
2
: in harmony with the surroundings
3
: on familiar ground : knowledgeable
teachers at home in their subject fields
home free
: out of jeopardy : in a comfortable position with respect to some objective

Examples of home in a Sentence

Noun Right now his home is a small apartment. People are concerned about protecting their homes. They have a second home on the lake.
Recent Examples on the Web
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Noun
The Associated Press confirmed on Wednesday that the Instagram handle belongs to Markle, and ABC News reported that the video was filmed by Prince Harry on a public beach near their home in Montecito, Calif., where the couple has lived since leaving royal life. Ellise Shafer, Variety, 2 Jan. 2025 Her mother, a day laborer who had to leave school at age 10 to work, cleaned houses under the demeaning conditions of the Jim Crow era: Butler sometimes accompanied her mom on the job, where they were required to enter homes through back doors. Stephen Kearse, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025
Adverb
The company is now home to AMC Network, IFC, WeTV, SundanceTV, BBC America and streaming services such as AMC+ and Shudder. Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 29 Dec. 2024 The journey for James Earl Carter Jr. began on Oct. 1, 1924, in the tiny Sumter County, Ga., town of Plains, home to fewer than 600 people in 2020. Scott Kraft, Los Angeles Times, 29 Dec. 2024
Adjective
Many of these areas are home to actively forming stars that are still encased in the gas and dust that feeds their growth. Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 12 Dec. 2024 Mark Wahlberg and Rhea Durham's kids are home for Thanksgiving! Rachel Raposas, People.com, 29 Nov. 2024
Verb
At the same time, homing spikes shoot out from Hazard’s back toward nearby enemies. Kris Holt, Forbes, 22 Nov. 2024 Their Hickory Hill estate in McLean, Va. was a rotating roster of secretaries of state, film stars and celebrities along with snakes, ponies, horses, hamsters, homing pigeons, ducks, geese, cockatoos and a huge turtle. Rosemary Feitelberg, WWD, 10 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for home 

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English hom, hoome "dwelling, building, one's native town or land," going back to Old English hām "landed property, estate, dwelling, house, inhabited place, native land," going back to Germanic *haima- "dwelling" (whence also Old Saxon & Old Frisian hēm "home, dwelling," Middle Dutch heem, heim "dwelling," Old High German heima "dwelling, homeland," Old Norse heimr "abode, land, this world," Gothic haims "village, countryside, [in compounds] home"), of uncertain origin

Note: A widely accepted etymology sees Germanic *haima- as going back to Indo-European *ḱoi-mo, an o-grade derivative, with a suffix *-mo-, of the verbal base *ḱei- "lie, be at rest." Also from *ḱoi-mo- would be an assumed Greek *koímē or *koîmos "bed," the source of the denominal derivative koimáō, koimân "to put to bed, lay to rest" (see cemetery); further associated are Lithuanian šeimà "family, household members (including servants)," Latvian sàime, Russian Church Slavic sěmĭ "person," sěmija, translating Greek andrápoda "prisoners of war sold as slaves," sěminŭ "slave, household member," Russian sem'já "family," Ukrainian sim'já. (Lithuanian kiẽmas "farmstead, village" and káimas "village" are perhaps related, via a form with a centum outcome of ḱ, or as a loanword from Germanic.) According to an alternative hypothesis, Germanic *haima- goes back to Indo-European *tḱoi̯-mo-, a derivative with *-mo- from Indo-European *tḱei̯- "dwell, inhabit" (in a more traditional representation *ḱþei̯-; see amphictyony). Directly comparable would be Sanskrit kṣémaḥ "habitable," kṣémaḥ or -am (noun) "calm, quiet, safety," which within Sanskrit are direct derivatives from kṣéti "(s/he) dwells." The Baltic and Slavic forms cited above would then be attributable to this form.

Adverb

Middle English hom, going back to Old English hām, probably from accusative of hām "dwelling, home entry 1" (with parallel forms in other Germanic languages)

Adjective

from attributive use of home entry 1

Verb

derivative of home entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

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

Adverb

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

Adjective

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1802, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

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

Dictionary Entries Near home

Cite this Entry

“Home.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/home. Accessed 6 Jan. 2025.

Kids Definition

1
a
: the house in which a person or family lives
2
: a family living together in one dwelling
3
: the place where something is usually or naturally found : habitat
the home of the elephant
4
a
: a place of origin
salmon returning to their home to spawn
b
: the country or place where one lives or where one's ancestors lived
5
: a place for the care of persons unable to care for themselves
old people's home
6
: the goal in some games
especially : home plate
homelike
-ˌlīk
adjective

home

2 of 4 adverb
1
: to or at home
went home
2
: to a final, closed, or standard position
drive a nail home
3
: deeply and meaningfully
the truth struck home

home

3 of 4 adjective
1
: of, relating to, or being a home
2
: prepared, done, or designed for use in a home
home cooking
3
: happening or operating in a home area
the home team

home

4 of 4 verb
homed; homing
1
: to go or return home
2
: to send to or provide with a home
Etymology

Noun

Middle English hom, from Old English hām "village, home"

Biographical Definition

Home 1 of 2

biographical name (1)

Sir Alec Douglas- 1903–1995 British prime minister (1963–64)

Home

2 of 2

biographical name (2)

William Douglas- 1912–1992 brother of Alec Douglas-Home British dramatist

More from Merriam-Webster on home

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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