curtilage

American  

[kur-tl-ij] / ˈkɜr tl ɪdʒ /

noun

Law.

1. the area of land occupied by a dwelling and its yard and outbuildings, actually enclosed or considered as enclosed.

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curtilage British  

/ ˈkɜːtɪlɪdʒ /

noun

1. the enclosed area of land adjacent to a dwelling house

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Etymology

Origin of curtilage

1250–1300; Middle English courtelage < Anglo-French; Old French cortillage, equivalent to cortil yard ( cort court + -il diminutive suffix) + -age -age

Example Sentences

Thousands of people from around the world “walked together” into that book and the mountains it describes, at a time when most of us could go no further than the curtilage of our dwellings.

From New York Times • Nov. 19, 2020

A curtilage is the area within the outer boundary of a home’s environs: the patios, yard and driveway.

From Economist • May 30, 2018

But Sotomayor wrote: “Nothing in our case law . . . suggests that the automobile exception gives an officer the right to enter a home or its curtilage to access a vehicle without a warrant.”

From Washington Post • May 29, 2018

Even a relatively minor search, like the one Rhodes conducted, triggers this warrant requirement so long as the officer “physically intrudes on the curtilage to gather evidence.”

From Slate • May 29, 2018

It was the common land that had once belonged within the curtilage of St. Ninian’s.

From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques

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