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ar·e·a (âre-ə)
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n.
1. A roughly bounded part of the space on a surface; a region:a farming area; the New York area.
2. A surface, especially an open, unoccupied piece of ground:a landing area; a playing area.
3. A distinct part or section, as of a building, set aside for a specific function:a storage area in the basement.
4. A division of experience, activity, or knowledge; a field:studies in the area of finance; a job in the health-care area.
5. An open, sunken space next to a building; an areaway.
6. Abbr. AThe extent of a planar region or of the surface of a solid measured in square units.
[Latinārea, open space; possibly akin toārere, to be dry; see ARID.]
are·aladj.
are·al·lyadv.
(click for a larger image)
area
To calculate the area of a rectangle, multiply the length by the width. The area of this rectangle is 50 square feet.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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