garden

1 of 3

noun

gar·​den ˈgär-dᵊn How to pronounce garden (audio)
plural gardens
1
a
: a plot of ground where herbs, fruits, flowers, or vegetables are cultivated
b
: a rich well-cultivated region
c
: a container (such as a window box) planted with usually a variety of small plants
2
a
: a public recreation area or park usually ornamented with plants and trees
a botanical garden
b
: an open-air eating or drinking place
c
: a large hall for public entertainment
gardenful noun

see also garden apartment, garden level

garden

2 of 3

verb

gardened; gardening ˈgär-də-niŋ How to pronounce garden (audio)
ˈgärd-niŋ

intransitive verb

: to lay out or work in a garden

transitive verb

1
: to make into a garden
2
: to ornament with gardens

garden

3 of 3

adjective

1
: of, relating to, used in, or frequenting a garden
a garden gate
a garden hose
garden pests
2
: of a kind typically grown in gardens
garden phlox
also : suitable for growth in an outdoor garden especially due to hardiness
garden chrysanthemums
3
: commonly found : garden-variety

Examples of garden in a Sentence

Noun We planted a small garden in our backyard. They were sitting out in the back garden.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The piece was slated to stand permanently in the museum’s burgeoning sculpture garden. Maddie Klett, ARTnews.com, 24 Oct. 2024 Yet, Victoria feels like another world, its grand, historic architecture and Edwardian gardens, its penchant for afternoon tea really puts the British in British Columbia. Leslie Kelly, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024
Verb
Their life takes a tragic turn, however, when Thunder is injured after a car hit her in her yard while gardening. Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 15 Oct. 2024 Despite her paternal musical lineage, Laila!’s rise has been gardened by women close to her including her sisters, grandmother, and mom-ager, who all call her their baby genius. Elise Brisco, Rolling Stone, 6 Sep. 2024
Adjective
Wilma was a lifelong member of the United Methodist Church, and a member of many social, civic and garden groups. Orlando Sentinel, OrlandoSentinel.com, 8 Feb. 2018 Garden categories include vegetables, fruit, flowers and miscellaneous items such as gourds, pumpkins and sunflowers. Courant Community, 29 Aug. 2017 See all Example Sentences for garden 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'garden.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English gardyn, borrowed from Anglo-French gardyn, gardeyn, jardin, from Old French jart, (Picard and French Flanders) gart "garden" (going back to Old Low Franconian *garda- "enclosure, fence" going back to Germanic *garđa-, whence Old Saxon gard "garden, dwelling, world," Old High German gart "enclosure," Old English geard "fence, enclosure") + -in, probably adjective suffix (going back to Latin -īnus -ine entry 1), originally in Gallo-Romance *hortus gardīnus "enclosed garden" — more at yard entry 1

Verb

derivative of garden entry 1

Adjective

Middle English gardyn, attributive use of gardyn garden entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

circa 1558, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of garden was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near garden

Cite this Entry

“Garden.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/garden. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

garden

1 of 3 noun
gar·​den ˈgärd-ᵊn How to pronounce garden (audio)
1
: a plot of ground where herbs, fruits, flowers, or vegetables are grown
2
a
: a public recreation area or park usually ornamented with plants and trees
a botanical garden
b
: an open-air eating or drinking place

garden

2 of 3 verb
gardened; gardening ˈgärd-niŋ How to pronounce garden (audio)
-ᵊn-iŋ
1
: to lay out or work in a garden
2
: to make into a garden

garden

3 of 3 adjective
1
: of, relating to, used in, or frequenting gardens
2
: of a kind grown under cultivation especially in the open
garden plants

More from Merriam-Webster on garden

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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