backyard

1 of 2

noun

back·​yard ˈbak-ˈyärd 

1

: an area at the rear of a house

2

: a nearby area : neighborhood

crimes committed in our own backyard

backyard

2 of 2

adjective

: located or occurring in a backyard

a backyard barbecue

also : lacking professional training : amateur

a backyard breeder

Synonyms

Noun

• environs
• neighborhood
• purlieus
• vicinage
• vicinity

Adjective

• amateur
• avocational
• jackleg
• nonprofessional
• Sunday

Examples of backyard in a Sentence

Noun

We spent the evening relaxing in the backyard.

shocked to learn that the wind farm would be right in our own backyard

Adjective

an orchid that is a favorite with backyard horticulturists

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Chrissy Teigen Makes Cookies with Family on Fourth of July as Daughter Esti Shows off Her Baking Skills The Reel then cuts to her kids screaming for toys in their backyard. —Emma Aerin Becker, Peoplemag, 12 July 2024

For our members, these services are a powerful reminder of the ongoing human rights crisis in our own backyard. —Hilly Haber, New York Daily News, 12 July 2024

Adjective

Since 2022, about 22.9 million birds from backyard flocks and commercial facilities have been destroyed to keep the virus at bay in Iowa, the nation's top egg producer, according to USDA data. —Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA TODAY, 29 May 2024

So, how did these once-elusive forest dwellers become backyard birds in only a few decades? —Anne Readel, Better Homes & Gardens, 9 Mar. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1618, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1719, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

backyard

noun

back·​yard

-ˈyärd

1

: an area in back of a house

2

: an area in which one has a special interest