terrace English · revision 15277

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1515|origins=la terra}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈtɛɹəs/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|frm|terrace]], from [[m|fro|terrace]], [[m|fro|terrasse|t=platform raised on a mound of earth; rubble]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(NODE 1998) from [[la-vul|*terrācea]], the feminine of [[m|la-vul|*terrāceus|t=earthen]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) from [[la|terra|t=earth, land]] (see [[terrain]]).^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) Merriam-Webster derives the French from [[pro|terrassa]].^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A gallery, portico or balcony: 1515 in Barnhart and the OED, the 1510s in Etymonline.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A raised level place for walking, especially one with a view, is from 1575.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) A natural shelf on a hillside is from 1674 (the 1670s in geology),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) and a cultivation terrace on a slope from 1796.^(OED 1989) A row of houses, first along the top of a slope, is from 1769, at first in street names like Adelphi Terrace,^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) and later used of ordinary streets.^(Etymonline) The tiered standing areas of a football ground are from 1950.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1515 – a gallery or balcony.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1575 – a raised walk.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1674 – a natural terrace.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1769 – a row of houses.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1950 – football terraces.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A level area cut into a slope, often one of a series.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A row of houses joined by shared walls, or the street they face.^(Collins 2023)

+ # A paved area beside a building, used as an outdoor living space; a [[patio]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(British)'' Tiers of standing room at a sports ground.^(OED 1989)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To form a slope into terraces, or provide with a terrace.^(AHD)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[terraceless]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[terra]]

+ * [[terrain]]

+ * [[terrene]]

+ * [[terrestrial]]

+ * [[terrier]]

+ * [[territorial]]

+ * [[territory]]

+ * [[inter]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ In Lincolnshire a terrace was a raised footpath beside a road;^(Wright 1898) in Yorkshire and Cheshire the name ''terrace'' or ''tarras'' was also given to a kind of mortar.^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}