villa

noun

vil·​la ˈvi-lə 

1

: a country estate

2

: the rural or suburban residence of a wealthy person

3

British : a detached or semidetached urban residence with yard and garden space

Synonyms

• mansion
• hacienda
• manor
• castle
• estate
• palace
• house

Examples of villa in a Sentence

They rented a seaside villa for two weeks.

a millionaire with a luxurious villa in Mexico

Recent Examples on the Web

The 7,530-square-foot space, dubbed Dongliang Maison, is connected to the multibrand retailer’s first Shanghai destination shop — also a charming historical British villa — which was launched a year ago. —Denni Hu, Footwear News, 13 Oct. 2025

Each of its 18, double-story villas has a private pool, a shaded courtyard, and a veranda that looks out across the waterways into the dense teak forest. —Marion Miller, Travel + Leisure, 10 Oct. 2025

Bayh has entered the villa Could the Bayh name be enough to break the solid red wall that's kept Democrats from winning a statewide office since 2012? —Marissa Meador, IndyStar, 10 Oct. 2025

Among the international highlights are Chile’s Awasi Patagonia, with a dozen villas on the doorstep of Torres del Paine National Park, and Australia’s Lizard Island Resort in Cairns, the only property on the island flanked by coral reefs and white-sand beaches. —Rachel Chang, AFAR Media, 10 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Italian, from Latin; akin to Latin vicus village — more at vicinity

First Known Use

1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for villa

• milla
• psylla
• scilla
• scylla
• zillah
• axilla
• flotilla
• gorilla
• guerilla
• guerrilla
• manilla
• mantilla

Kids Definition

villa

noun

vil·​la ˈvil-ə 

1

: a country estate

2

: a large expensive house usually located in the country

Biographical Definition

Villa

biographical name

Vil·​la ˈvē-yə 

Francisco 1878–1923 Pancho ˈpän-(ˌ)chō 

ˈpan-

Villa originally Doroteo Arango Mexican bandit and revolutionary