acre

noun

\ ˈā-kər

Definition of acre

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a archaic : a field especially of arable land or pastureland

b acres plural : lands, estate

2 : any of various units of area specifically : a unit in the U.S. and England equal to 43,560 square feet (4047 square meters) — see Weights and Measures Table

3 : a broad expanse or great quantity acres of free publicity

Acre

geographical name (1)

\ ˈä-krē

, -(ˌ)krā

Definition of Acre (Entry 2 of 3)

state in western Brazil bordering on Peru and Bolivia; capital Rio Branco area 59,343 square miles (153,698 square kilometers), population 733,559

Acre

geographical name (2)

\ ˈä-kər

, ˈā-kər, ˈä-krə

variants: or Hebrew ʽAkko or Old Testament Accho \ ˈä-kō

, ˈā- \ or New Testament Ptolemaïs \ ˌtä-lə-ˈmā-əs

Definition of Acre (Entry 3 of 3)

city and port at the head of a bay on the Mediterranean Sea north of Mount Carmel in northwestern Israel population 37,400

Examples of acre in a Sentence

Noun

The house sits on two acres of land. They own hundreds of acres of farmland.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The Sand Fire had burned more than 2,500 acres as of Tuesday night and was 70% contained, according to Cal Fire. — Madeline Holcombe, CNN, "West Coast's triple-digit heat wave drives statewide energy conservation effort," 12 June 2019 As of June 3, Arizona has seen 524 wildfires that burned more than 10,610 acres. — And, azcentral, "Here's the status of 5 wildfires burning in Arizona right now," 11 June 2019 The Sand Fire, which started Saturday afternoon in Yolo County, had burned more than 2,200 acres as of Sunday evening and was 20% contained. — Patrick May, The Mercury News, "5 ways to track California’s wildfire season," 10 June 2019 The Mendocino Complex fire burned 459,123 acres, more than any fire in state history, before it was completely contained in January, Cal Fire said. — Joseph Serna, latimes.com, "Attempt to plug a wasp nest sparked the biggest wildfire in California history," 6 June 2019 Officials are currently warning people to evacuate parts of southern California where the Holy Fire burned more than 23,000 acres this summer. — Rachel Becker, The Verge, "Why fire-scorched California is now readying for mudslides," 30 Nov. 2018 The main building is not a single edifice, but actually 11 pavilions assembled along a ridge and around a half-acre pool sprouting with rushes, irises and lilies. — Julie V. Iovine, WSJ, "The Best Architecture of 2018: Building for Complex Experiences," 14 Dec. 2018 Located in the Thimble Islands of Long Island Sound, Potato Island is a one-acre snippet of land with a 3,871-square-foot house sitting on the island’s southern end. — Megan Barber, Curbed, "Charming 1912 house on a private island asks $4.9M," 5 Dec. 2018 Trudi Lee-Clark’s quest bears a tragic similarity to other family and friends of Native girls and women who have gone missing on the 1.3-million-acre Yakama reservation. — Tammy Ayer, The Seattle Times, "47 years, zero answers: 16-year-old Toppenish girl disappeared after Christmas Eve 1971. Her sister refuses to give up the search.," 4 Nov. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'acre.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for acre

Noun

Middle English aker, acre, going back to Old English æcer, going back to Germanic *akraz (whence also, with k geminate in West Germanic, Old Saxon akkar "field," Old High German ackar, Old Norse akr "arable land," Gothic akrs "field"), going back to Indo-European *h₂eǵros, whence also Latin ager, "piece of land, field," Greek agrós, Sanskrit ájraḥ,

Note: This Indo-European noun is traditionally linked to the verbal base *h₂eǵ- "drive (cattle, etc.)" (see agent, on the assumption that *h₂eǵ-ros originally meant "pasture," "fallow land," onto which the cattle were driven, and later developed other senses, as "cultivated field." The semantic plausibility of such a derivation has recently been questioned, however.

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