patio
Americannoun
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patios
plural
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an area, usually paved, adjoining a house and used as an area for outdoor lounging, dining, etc.
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a courtyard, especially of a house, enclosed by low buildings or walls.
noun
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an open inner courtyard, esp one in a Spanish or Spanish-American house
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an area adjoining a house, esp one that is paved and used for outdoor activities
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of patio
1820–30, < Spanish, Old Spanish: courtyard, perhaps originally open area; compare Medieval Latin patium meadow, pasturage, perhaps derivative of Latin *patitus, past participle of patēre to lie open. See patent
Explanation
A patio is a space for sitting outside that's usually paved. Your neighbors' patio might be paved with bricks and decorated with flowers in pots. Some patios are paved with stone or concrete slabs that together form a sort of outdoor floor. You can also call this area a terrace, verandah, or courtyard. A patio is usually located beside or behind a house or apartment building, although some public buildings also have patios — a restaurant might have a patio for outdoor seating, for example. Patio means "court open to the sky" in Spanish, from the Old Provençal pati, "communal pasture."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Or you could stop for a snack at Cafe Aquatica, whose patio fronts the water’s edge.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Trump was discussing changes he has made to the White House grounds, including replacing portions of the Rose Garden lawn with a stone patio, when the conversation turned to turf.
From Salon ● Aug. 9, 2026
There’s a private patio right outside the floor-to-ceiling windows.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026
Local property owner Jon Janikies testified that the bill would allow the public to “destroy” his entire outdoor patio, “which I have enhanced with an outdoor bed, sink, television, fireplace, tables and chairs.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
And then he goes to the side of the house and starts to put the patio chair cushions into a storage box.
From "Zara’s Rules for Record-Breaking Fun" by Hena Khan
Outside of the main residence, the grounds of the property are just as attention-grabbing, featuring a spread of entertaining spaces, including covered patios and open-air lounges, all of which offer staggering coastline views.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
This preconstruction home, shown in a rendering, will feature a main floor with an open-concept living area that flows outside to multiple decks and patios.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
They have battled to keep their windows, patios and cars clean - and they have been unable to hang out their washing as piles of soot would gather on anything in their gardens.
From BBC ● Feb. 12, 2026
Available in 55-, 65-, and 75-inch models, it fits everything from intimate patios to sprawling decks.
From Salon ● Nov. 20, 2025
Within just a block or two, you stop seeing modest apartment complexes and start seeing houses and luxury apartment buildings, restaurants with outdoor patios, and shops of all kinds.
From "Piecing Me Together" by Renée Watson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
