veranda

Pronunciation

• IPA: /vəˈɹæn.də/^[1]

Etymology

It is Anglo-Indian,^[2] borrowed from Hindi varaṇḍā,^[3][2][4] whose own source is disputed.^[3][2][5] It may be from Persian bar āmadaḥ “coming out”,^[3][5] or from Portuguese varanda (“long balcony, terrace”),^[3][2][5] perhaps related to Spanish baranda (“railing”) and ultimately to Vulgar Latin *barra “bar”.^[2][3][5] French véranda is borrowed from English.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

It first named an open portico or light roofed gallery along the front of a house.^[2][6]

Semantic evolution

In Australia and New Zealand it also came to mean a roof built out over the pavement in front of shops,^[6] and in the southern United States a large open porch.^[5]

Timeline

• 1711 – first recorded.^[2][6][4]
• 1873 – the Australian and New Zealand shop-front sense.^[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A roofed open gallery or porch along the outside of a building.

Word family

• verandaed

Related words

• bar
• bungalow

References

1. [1] Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Boston: Houghton Mifflin
4. [1] [2] Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
6. [1] [2] [3] [4] Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press