tenancy

American  

[ten-uhn-see] / ˈtɛn ən si /

noun

plural

tenancies

1. a holding, as of lands, by any kind of title; occupancy of land, a house, or the like, under a lease or on payment of rent; tenure.

2. the period of a tenant's occupancy.

3. occupancy or enjoyment of a position, post, situation, etc..

   her tenancy as professor of history at the state university.

4. Archaic. a piece of land held by a tenant; holding.

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tenancy British  

/ ˈtɛnənsɪ /

noun

1. the temporary possession or holding by a tenant of lands or property owned by another

2. the period of holding or occupying such property

3. the period of holding office, a position, etc

4. property held or occupied by a tenant

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Etymology

Origin of tenancy

First recorded in 1570–80; ten(ant) + -ancy; compare Medieval Latin tenantia, variant of tenentia

Explanation

Tenancy is the act of living somewhere, especially in a house, building, or apartment. You could say, for example, that your tenancy in the little white farmhouse lasted for six years, until you moved to the city. The noun tenancy means a period of living in a certain place or having a business in a specific building. If you give up your tenancy, you move to a new place, and if your tenancy ends earlier than you expected, you may owe your landlord some money. The word tenancy is closely related to tenant, with its earliest meaning of "one who holds land," from a Latin root — tenere, "to keep" or "to hold."

Example Sentences

In the background a doorbell with the name of the building is visible, which enabled us to find the tenancy agreement in the Epstein files.

From BBC • Apr. 24, 2026

This might be a program where a renter stays for an agreed number of years in return for a lump sum at the end of the tenancy that can be put toward a down payment.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 23, 2026

Eileen Thomson, director of Fair Isle Development Company, said it was hoped a family could be attracted to the tenancy to help support the school which has just four pupils.

From BBC • Mar. 14, 2026

I’m not convinced you should push for joint tenancy with the rights of survivorship, where you both own 100% of your home.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 12, 2026

In all the years of our tenancy we never saw the Zemindar who owned our land.

From "Nectar in a Sieve" by Kamala Markandaya