granny flat

noun

chiefly British

: an apartment that is adjacent to the main living quarters of a house

Examples of granny flat in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The man who claimed to be disrupting the backyard housing industry — securing financing, permits and building granny flats across San Diego County, before collecting millions of dollars without doing the work — is now seeking federal protection from his many creditors. —Jeff McDonald, Mercury News, 13 June 2025

In most cases, Carmel homeowners currently have to apply for a zoning variance and go through a public hearing process in order to build granny flats, which can be a lengthy process. —Jake Allen, The Indianapolis Star, 30 Sep. 2024

In-law suites, garage apartments, or granny flats are all variations of accessory dwelling units—also known as ADUs. —Shivani Vyas, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Apr. 2025

While the current legislation says that local governments can allow granny flats—independent living spaces added to homes or properties—new bills making their way to the state's chambers could require them to do so. —David Faris, Newsweek, 17 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

from its use by parents of the family living in the house

First Known Use

1965, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for granny flat

• acrobat
• autocrat
• automat
• bundesrat
• bureaucrat
• butterfat
• caveat
• chemostat
• copycat
• cryostat
• democrat
• diplomat