tiny house

noun

plural tiny houses
: a small house or mobile home that typically has a floor plan of less than 500 square feet and that is usually designed for ergonomics and space efficiency
The Joneses are one of thousands of families around the United States who have chosen to live in a tiny house in the last few years. For some families, it's about saving money. Others love having a house they can move anywhere, because some are actually built on trailers and can be towed with a car.The New York Times Magazine
Now, students and recent graduates of Northwestern University are building a home that takes the tiny house concept one step further: a 128-square foot house that is totally off the grid, equipped with solar panels for energy, a battery bank that can store power for times when no solar power is available, and a system for harvesting rain water.Rebecca J. Rosen
sometimes hyphenated when used before another noun
The rhetoric of modern tiny-house living begins with the assertion that big houses, aside from being wasteful and environmentally noxious, are debtors' prisons …Alec Wilkinson

Examples of tiny house in a Sentence

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.
Storage sheds and tiny houses can provide mini getaways that don’t require leaving home. Shea Simmons, People.com, 22 Feb. 2025 Minimalism is trending in home design and organization—just think of all the ‘clean aesthetic’ photos flooding social media or the countless real estate and home improvement shows dedicated to tiny houses. Mara Santilli, Flow Space, 18 Feb. 2025 Mustard Seed Tiny Homes View 10 Images There are large tiny houses and then there's the Dogwood. Adam Williams, New Atlas, 22 Jan. 2025 Below, discover more of our favorite tiny house picks available to shop at Amazon and turn your vacation home dreams into a reality. Kaitlin Marks, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for tiny house

Word History

First Known Use

1987, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of tiny house was in 1987

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Cite this Entry

“Tiny house.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tiny%20house. Accessed 27 Feb. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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