toft

noun

ˈtȯft

ˈtäft

British

: a site for a dwelling and its outbuildings

also : an entire holding comprising a homestead and additional land

Examples of toft in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

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Laxton had two, the Town Moor Common and the much larger Westwood Common, which together supported a hundred and four rights to common use, with each of these rights attached to a cottage or a toft of land in the village. —

Eula Biss, The New Yorker, 8 June 2022

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English, from Old Norse topt; probably akin to Greek dapedon floor, demein to build, pedon ground — more at timber, ped

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of toft was before the 12th century

See more words from the same century