farm

[ fahrm ]

noun

1. a tract of land, usually with a house, barn, silo, etc., on which crops and often livestock are raised for livelihood.
2. land or water devoted to the raising of animals, fish, plants, etc.:

   a pig farm;

   an oyster farm;

   a tree farm.

3. a site, usually commercial, where a product is manufactured or cultivated:

   a cheese farm;

   a honey farm.

4. the system, method, or act of collecting revenue by leasing a territory in districts.
5. a country or district leased for the collection of revenue.
6. a fixed yearly amount payment of money or goods, accepted in lieu of taxes owed.
7. a tract of land on which an industrial function is carried out, such as the drilling or storage of oil or the generation of electricity by solar power.
8. Informal: Often Disparaging and Offensive. a place or business that serves a specified type of client or customer:

   Sending people to so-called fat farms rarely increases their health.

   Gone are the days when inpatient mental health care was commonly referred to as the “funny farm.”

9. a business or place that turns out specified products or services in the manner of a factory; a mill:

   an online content farm.

10. English History.
    1. the rent or income from leased property.
    2. the condition of being leased at a fixed rent; possession under lease; a lease.
11. Also called farm team,. Chiefly Baseball. a team in a minor league that is owned by or affiliated with a major-league team, for training or keeping players until ready or needed.
12. Obsolete. a fixed yearly amount payable in the form of rent, taxes, or the like.

verb (used with object)

1. to cultivate (land).
2. to raise (animals, fish, plants, etc.) on land or in water.
3. to take the proceeds or profits of (a tax, undertaking, etc.) on paying a fixed sum.
4. to let or lease (taxes, revenues, an enterprise, etc.) to another for a fixed sum or a percentage (often followed by out ).
5. to let or lease the labor or services of (a person) for hire.
6. to contract for the maintenance of (a person, institution, etc.):

   The county farms its poor.

7. (in a video game) to collect (valuable items) for a character’s use or to sell in the game’s virtual economy by repeatedly performing a task for a reward or killing an enemy for a dropped item:

   I farm crafting supplies just to sell them at the auction house.

verb (used without object)

1. to cultivate the soil; operate a farm.

verb phrase

1. 1. to assign (work, privileges, or the like) to another by financial agreement; subcontract; lease:

      The busy shipyard farmed out two construction jobs to a smaller yard.

   2. to assign the care of (a child or dependent person) to another:

      She farms her elderly aunt out to a retired nurse during the workweek.

   3. Chiefly Baseball. to assign (a player) to a farm.
   4. to exhaust (farmland) by overcropping.
   5. to drill (oil or gas wells), especially by subcontract on land owned or leased by another.

farm

/ fɑːm /

noun

1. 1. a tract of land, usually with house and buildings, cultivated as a unit or used to rear livestock
   2. ( as modifier )

      farm produce

   3. ( in combination )

      farmland

2. a unit of land or water devoted to the growing or rearing of some particular type of vegetable, fruit, animal, or fish

   a fish farm

3. an installation for storage
4. a district of which one or more taxes are leased
5. history
   1. a fixed sum paid by an individual or group for the right of collecting and retaining taxes, rents, etc
   2. a fixed sum paid regularly by a town, county, etc, in lieu of taxes
   3. the leasing of a source of revenue to an individual or group
   4. a fixed tax, rent, etc, paid regularly

verb

1. tr
   1. to cultivate (land)
   2. to rear (stock, etc) on a farm
2. intr to engage in agricultural work, esp as a way of life
3. tr to look after a child for a fixed sum
4. 1. to collect the moneys due and retain the profits from (a tax district, business, etc) for a specified period on payment of a sum or sums
   2. to operate (a franchise) under similar conditions

Derived Forms

• ˈfarmable, adjective

Other Words From

• farm·a·ble adjective
• min·i·farm noun
• non·farm adjective
• pro·farm adjective
• su·per·farm noun
• un·farm·a·ble adjective
• un·farmed adjective
• well-farmed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of farm¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English ferme “lease, rented land, rent,” from Anglo-French, Old French, from Vulgar Latin ferma (unattested), derivative of fermāre (unattested) for Latin firmāre “to make firm, confirm”; firm ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of farm¹

C13: from Old French ferme rented land, ultimately from Latin firmāre to settle

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. buy the farm, Slang. to die or be killed.

More idioms and phrases containing farm

In addition to the idiom beginning with farm , also see buy it (the farm) .

Example Sentences

“I firmly believe that it is the best and probably only path to pass a five-year farm bill this year.”

From Salon

The University of Surrey are in the process of building a 12.5MW solar farm, where we can test some of these modules.

From Science Daily

Plus, the West had antibiotics — which spread willy-nilly not just in medications, but in toothpaste, lipstick and, perhaps most dangerously, into farm animals to promote growth.

From Salon

Although nearly half of Fresno County is dominated by agriculture, the city of Fresno is California’s fifth-largest city and long ago shed its identity as a quaint farm town.

From Los Angeles Times

A majority of farming operations in Ventura County are smaller growers that might not have crop insurance or are underinsured because fire coverage is not available for all farms.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• acreage
• estate
• field
• garden
• grassland
• homestead
• lawn
• meadow
• nursery
• orchard
• pasture
• plantation
• ranch

More About Farm

What is a farm?

A farm is a plot of land that is used to grow crops and raise livestock, as in On our farm, we raise sheep and sell their wool.

The word farm is also used as a verb to mean to work land to grow crops or to raise animals.

Farms can be found in nearly every country with land suitable for growing things or feeding animals. A farm usually includes a house where the owner, their family, and their workers live and other buildings, such as a barn to house animals and a silo to store feed or harvested crops.

In this same sense, farm means to cultivate the land of a farm or to raise animals on a farm, as in He farms chickens and cows for a living.

Often, another word is used with farm to note what kind of crops or animals are found at a given farm. For example, a chicken farm would focus on raising chickens, while a potato farm would be dedicated to growing potatoes.

A farm may also be an area of water used to raise fish, aquatic plants, or aquatic animals. For example, you could own a salmon farm where you raise salmon in tanks or enclosed ponds to be sold as food.

Example: My grandfather owns a dairy farm where he raises cows and sells milk.

Where does farm come from?

The first records of farm come from around 1250. It ultimately comes from the Latin firmāre, meaning “to settle.”

Farm is also often used metaphorically to refer to a business or outlet that produces a large quantity of something very quickly. For example, a puppy farm is a business that quickly breeds dogs, usually without concern for animal health. A content farm is a website that publishes a large amount of content meant to earn lots of money through advertising with content that satisfies search engine algorithms but not necessarily human readers. And a server farm is a large collection of computer servers that a company uses for its own needs or rents out to others for their computing needs.

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to farm?

• farmer (noun)
• farming (noun, present tense verb)
• farmable (adjective)
• minifarm (noun)
• superfarm (noun)
• unfarmable (adjective)
• unfarmed (adjective)

What are some synonyms for farm?

• ranch
• homestead
• plantation
• cultivate
• harvest
• tend

What are some words that share a root or word element with farm?

• farmer
• farming
• farmland
• farmhouse
• farmstead

What are some words that often get used in discussing farm?

• crops
• livestock
• dairy
• content
• server

How is farm used in real life?

Farm is a very common word that most often refers to a place where crops are grown and animals are raised.

Can we all delete social media together and go live on a farm

— Leeor Alexandra (@leeoralexandra) July 22, 2020

My supper is homemade beef sticks, chunk cheese and a glass of milk.
Can you tell I grew up on a dairy farm? 🐄🐮🧀🥛

— Jordan Schroeer (@Jordan_VNL) February 23, 2020

I've long wondered who clicks those content farm links at the bottom of a story, the ones with headlines like 'You won't believe what these actors look like now!' I now have an answer: my dad

— Craig Meyer (@CraigMeyerPG) July 12, 2020

Try using farm!

Which of the following words is NOT a synonym for farm?

A. homestead
B. yard
C. ranch
D. plantation