home

home

home [home homes homed homing] noun, adjective, adverb, verb   [həʊm]    [hoʊm] 

noun

HOUSE, ETC.
1. countable, uncountable the house or flat/apartment that you live in, especially with your family
• We are not far from my home now.
• Old people prefer to stay in their own homes.
• She leaves home at 7 every day.
• the family home
• While travelling she missed the comforts of home.
• He left home (= left his parents and began an independent life) at sixteen.
• Nowadays a lot of people work from home.
• I'll call you from home later.
• (figurative) We haven't found a home for all our books yet (= a place where they can be kept).
• stray dogs needing new homes

see also  stay-at-home

2. countable a house or flat/apartment, etc, when you think of it as property that can be bought and sold
• a holiday/summer home
• A lot of new homes are being built on the edge of town.
• Private home ownership is increasing faster than ever.
• They applied for a home improvement loan.

see also  mobile home, second home, stately home  

TOWN/COUNTRY

3. countable, uncountable the town, district, country, etc. that you come from, or where you are living and that you feel you belong to
• I often think about my friends back home.
• Jane left England and made Greece her home.

• Jamaica is home to over two million people.  

FAMILY

4. countable used to refer to a family living together, and the way it behaves
• She came from a violent home.
• They wanted to give the boy a secure and loving home.
• He had always wanted a real home with a wife and children.

see also  broken home  

FOR OLD PEOPLE/CHILDREN

5. countable a place where people who cannot care for themselves live and are cared for by others
• a children's home
• an old people's home
• a retirement home
• a home for the mentally ill
• She has lived in a home since she was six.

see also  nursing home, rest home  

FOR PETS

6. countable a place where pets with no owner are taken care of

• a dogs'/cats' home  

OF PLANT/ANIMAL

7. singular, uncountable the place where a plant or animal usually lives; the place where sb/sth can be found
• This region is the home of many species of wild flower.
• The tiger's home is in the jungle.
• The Rockies are home to bears and mountain lions.
• Arizona is home to the Grand Canyon and the Petrified Forest.

• Beverly Hills is the home of the stars.  

WHERE STH FIRST DONE

8. singular the ~ of sth the place where sth was first discovered, made or invented
• New Orleans, the home of jazz
• Greece, the home of democracy
more at charity begins at home at  charity, close to home at  close² _adj., eat sb out of house and home at  eat, an Englishman's home is his castle at  Englishman, your spiritual home at  spiritual  
Word Origin:
Old English hām, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch heem and German Heim.  
Thesaurus:
home noun
1. C, U
• My home is very near here.
house • • address • |BrE flat • |especially AmE apartment • |informal place • |formal dwelling • • residence • |formal humorous abode •
at home/sb's house/an address/sb's flat/sb's apartment/sb's place/sb's residence
in a home/sb's house/sb's flat/sb's apartmentsb's place/a dwelling/a residence
have a/an home/house/address/flat/apartment/place of your own
2. C
• 200 new homes are being built in the town.
house • • cottage • |BrE flat • • bungalow • |especially AmE apartment • • townhouse • • condominium • |AmE ranch house •
a detached/semi-detached home/house/cottage/bungalow
a one-/two-/three-bedroom home/house/cottage/flat/bungalow/apartment/townhouse/ranch house
rent a home/house/cottage/flat/bungalow/apartment
3. C, U
• She left England and made her home in Spain.
homeland • • hometown • • birthplace •
a/an beloved/adopted home/homeland/hometown
a tribal/traditional/spiritual home/homeland
return to your home/homeland/hometown/birthplace
4. C
• a child from a secure and loving home
family • • household • • house •
a low-income/poor/high-income/wealthy/rich home/family/household
come from a …home/family
sb's home/family life/background/situation  
Collocations:
Decorating and home improvement
Houses
refurbish/renovate/ (BrE) do up a building/a house
convert a building/house/room into homes/offices/(especially NAmE) apartments/(BrE) flats
extend/enlarge a house/building/room/kitchen
build (BrE) an extension (to the back/rear of a house)/(NAmE) an addition (on/to sth)/(BrE) a conservatory
knock down/demolish a house/home/building/wall
knock out/through the wall separating two rooms
Decoration
furnish/paint/ (especially BrE) decorate a home/house/apartment/flat/room
be decorated in bright colours/(especially US) colors/in a traditional style/with flowers/with paintings
paint/plaster the walls/ceiling
hang/put up/strip off/remove the wallpaper
install/replace/remove the bathroom fixtures/(BrE) fittings
build/put up shelves
lay wooden flooring/timber decking/floor tiles/a carpet/a patio
put up/hang/take down a picture/painting/poster/curtain
DIY/home improvement
do (BrE) DIY/carpentry/the plumbing/the wiring
make home improvements
add/install central heating/underfloor heating/insulation
fit/install double-glazing/a smoke alarm
insulate your house/your home/the walls/the pipes/the tanks/(especially BrE) the loft
fix/repair a roof/a leak/a pipe/the plumbing/a leaking (especially BrE) tap/(NAmE usually) faucet
block/clog (up)/unblock/unclog a pipe/sink
make/drill/fill a hole
hammer (in)/pull out/remove a nail
tighten/untighten/loosen/remove a screw
saw/cut/treat/stain/varnish/paint wood 
Collocations:
Moving house
Renting
live in a rented/(especially NAmE) rental property
rent/share/move into a furnished house/(BrE) flat/(especially NAmE) apartment
rent a studio/(BrE) a studio flat/(especially NAmE) a studio apartment/(BrE) a bedsit
find/get a housemate/(BrE) a flatmate/(NAmE) a roommate
sign/break the lease/rental agreement/contract
extend/renew/terminate the lease/(BrE) tenancy
afford/pay the rent/the bills/(NAmE) the utilities
(especially BrE) fall behind with/ (especially NAmE) fall behind on the rent
pay/lose/return a damage deposit/(NAmE) security deposit
give/receive a month's/two-weeks' notice to leave/vacate the property
Being a landlord
have a flat/apartment/room (BrE) to let/(especially NAmE) for rent
rent (out)/lease (out)/ (BrE) let (out)/sublet a flat/apartment/house/property
collect/increase/raise the rent
evict the existing tenants
attract/find new/prospective tenants
invest in rental property/(BrE) property to let/(BrE) the buy-to-let market
Buying
buy/acquire/purchase a house/(a) property/(especially NAmE) (a piece of) prime real estate
call/contact/use (BrE) an estate agent/(NAmE) a Realtor™/(NAmE) a real estate agent/broker
make/ (BrE) put in an offer on a house
put down/save for (BrE) a deposit on a house
make/put/save for (especially NAmE) a down payment on a house/home
apply for/arrange/take out a mortgage/home loan
(struggle to) pay the mortgage
make/meet/keep up/cover the monthly mortgage payments/(BrE also) repayments
(BrE) repossess/ (especially NAmE) foreclose on sb's home/house
Selling
put your house/property on the market/up for sale/up for auction
increase/lower your price/the asking price
have/hold/hand over the deed/(especially BrE) deeds of/to the house, land, etc. 
Example Bank:
• Andalusia, the home of flamenco
• Fitting a burglar alarm is the most effective way to increase home security.
• He came from an appalling home background.
• He claimed he had bought the cigarettes for home consumption, not to sell them.
• He didn't leave home until he was 24.
• He supplements his income with part-time or home work.
• He used to spend the summer painting at his country home.
• He went missing while on home leave from prison.
• He'd always dreamed of owning his own home.
• Her job means she's away from home for weeks at a time.
• I arranged to meet her in her office, as she seemed more relaxed on her home territory.
• I've tried all the home remedies for headaches without success.
• It's unusual for young people over 25 to still live in the family home.
• Let's go home— I'm tired.
• Make sure you insure your home contents for an adequate amount.
• More and more children in the school are from single-parent homes.
• My grandmother has a home help who comes and cleans twice a week.
• On the home front, the fuel crisis continues to worsen.
• Perhaps we could find a home for the kitten.
• Placing a child in public care is sometimes the only solution to ill-treatment in the natural home.
• Priceless antique furniture was destroyed in the fire at the stately home.
• She desperately missed her home comforts while camping.
• She had never had a stable home life.
• She left her native home in Ireland and went to America.
• She missed her mother's home cooking.
• The banner said ‘Welcome home dad!’
• The course is suitable for classroom or home study.
• The doctor was assaulted on a home visit.
• The first time he visited New Orleans he knew he had found his spiritual home.
• The hill is the legendary home of King Arthur.
• The hotel's friendly atmosphere makes it a real home (away) from home.
• The lock-up garage provides a secure home for your car.
• The mudflats offer a winter home to thousands of migrating swans.
• The newspaper gives priority to home news over international news.
• The people abandoned their homes and headed for the hills.
• The show gives home-grown musical talent the chance to show what they can do.
• The storm wrecked the family's caravan home.
• The team are playing away from home.
• The team's home form has slumped in recent weeks.
• These birds are in danger of becoming extinct as their forest home disappears.
• These children badly need a stable and secure home life.
• They also have a holiday home in Spain.
• They also have a weekend home in the Catskills.
• They are a difficult team to beat on their home ground.
• They designed and built their own home.
• They found their dream home on the shore of a lake.
• They hope to sell as many computers on the home market as they export.
• They run a retirement home for the elderly.
• This computer is marketed for home use.
• Try calling me on my home number after six o'clock.
• We are offering a free 15-day home trial on our software.
• We have a home movie of my dad teaching me to swim.
• We have to provide a good home for the children.
• Work begins this week on a purpose-built home for the city's homeless.
• a laser printer aimed at the home user
• a shelter for people with no permanent home
• a temporary home for the paintings
• children from a broken home
• home-grown vegetables
• home-made bread
• seamen serving in home waters
• the market for home entertainment systems
• the party's spokesman for home affairs
• A family of four was rescued early this morning when fire ripped through their terraced home.
• Eventually she had to give up her house and go into a nursing home.
• He refused to give up his house and garden and go into a retirement home.
• His children were upset when he sold the family home.
• I had always thought of India as my spiritual home.
• I often think about my friends back home.
• I'll call you from home later.
• Juliet left England and made Spain her home.
• My grandmother moved into an old people's home two years ago.
• Nora's parents lost custody, and she was placed in a children's home.
• Nowadays a lot of people work from home.
• She comes from a broken home.
• She had to move to a residential care home when her health deteriorated.
• She left home and began an independent life at sixteen.
• She made her home in Spain.
• The centre provides an adoption programme for pets needing new homes.
• The tiger's home is in the jungle.
• We bought a holiday home in France.
• We haven't found a home for all my father's books yet.
Idioms: at home ▪ away from home ▪ bring home the bacon ▪ bring something home to somebody ▪ come home to somebody ▪ hit home ▪ home and dry ▪ home from home ▪ home is where the heart is ▪ home sweet home ▪ set up home ▪ something comes home to roost ▪ when he's/it's at home

Derived: home in on something