arean.
/ˈɛːrɪə/, U.S. /ˈɛriə/ I. A region, section, or subdivision of a surface, object, etc.
* A region or piece of ground; a part of the surface of the earth (or another planet, etc.).† 3. A garden bed or border. Obsolete.
1. A level open space with defined boundaries, either open-air or within a building, in a variety of particular contexts; an arena, court, square, yard, etc. Now historical and rare.
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a1552 J. Leland Itinerary (1711) IV. 44 In the West Part of this Street is a large Area invironed with meetly good Buildinges.
1600 P. Holland in tr. Livy Rom. Hist. 2nd Index sig. Eeeeeev/1 The broad yards before temples, not covered but compassed about with columnes, like a cloister with an altar in the mids, be called Area.
1663 W. Charleton Chorea Gigantum 31 The Area, or plot of ground, betwixt a Building and its Boundaries, may rightly enough be call'd a Court: yet, where is the necessity.., that that Court [at Stone-Heng] was originally design'd and marck'd out for a place for the slaughter of Victims? Must all Structures environed with such Areae be Temples?
1726 tr. J. Cavalier Mem. Wars Cevennes i. 107 The Gun-powder being..spread over Floors and Areas made for that purpose.
1762 D. Hume Hist. Eng. (new ed.) V. 195 That the communion-table should be removed from the middle of the area.
1789 Scots Mag. Nov. 524 The citizens..purchased a situation for the intended new college, consisting of part of the areas, chambers, and church of the collegiate provostry and prebends of the Kirk-a-field.
1876 J. H. Parker Archæol. Rome VII. p. iii At the foot of the podium, which is the same as that of the original arena; this large level space had been indifferently called the ground, the floor, the stage, the area, or the arena.
1901 W. Lowrie Monuments Early Church ii. 59 A Christian, Evelpius..had founded a sepulchral area, with a chapel (cella) constructed within its limits, which he leaves to the ‘holy Church’.
1931 Speculum 6 97 It is surprising that a large number of the areae dealt with in these documents did not have buildings of any description upon them.
2. spec.
a. Originally: †(in a theatre) a level, typically semicircular, space immediately in front of the stage where audience members (or performers) may stand (obsolete) (historical in later use). Later: a seated part of a theatre auditorium immediately behind the stalls and beneath the circle; cf. area seat n. at Compounds 2 (now rare).
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society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > the theatre or the stage > a theatre > auditorium > [noun] > other parts of auditorium
area1627
vomitory1730
orchestra1768
Fops' alley1782
crush-room1806
basket1812
lattice1818
1627 G. Richardson Of State of Europe xiii. 18 The country..resembleth the Area of an halfe Theater, lying open onely towards..the South, & vpon the other sides environed with great hils, and rough forests; being plaine within.
1697 J. Potter Archæologiæ Græcæ I. i. viii. facing p. 38 (caption) The Area of the Theatre of Bacchus.
1740 C. Cibber Apol. Life C. Cibber xii. 240 The Area, or Platform of the old Stage, projected about four Foot forwarder, in a Semi-oval Figure.
1813 Gentleman's Mag. Aug. 121/2 The area or yard, now forming the pit, seems to have been entirely open, and filled promiscuously by the crowd.
1822 European Mag. & London Rev. Oct. 372/1 The interior of the house [sc. Drury-Lane Theatre] has undergone a a total and magnificent change; the most prominent features of which are the reduction of the area, the enlargement of the stage in width, [etc.].
1899 Builder 15 July 54/3 There is only one tier of seats above the area.
1922 Musical Times Oct. 691/1 The area and the remainder of the stalls will be priced at a trifle more than the front stalls.
b. A sunken court giving access to the basement of a house, separated from the pavement by railings, with a flight of steps providing access. Cf. areaway n. at Compounds 2.
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society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > a building > courtyard > [noun] > (back or front) yard
yardOE
backside1450
stead1546
outyard1600
lot1657
backyard1659
outlet1667
area1712
back lot1714
backlet1724
door-yardc1764
front yard1767
rear yard1800
tenement yard1874
sitooterie1994
1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 454. ⁋6 One of the Windows which opened to the Area below.
1761 London Chron. 28 Apr. 414/2 A servant maid to a grocer in Frith-street,..Soho, fell out of the garret window into the area, and was killed on the spot.
1810 Duke of Wellington Dispatches (1838) VI. 9 To go, like gentlemen, out of the hall door..and not out of the back door, or by the area.
1838 C. Dickens Oliver Twist I. x. 150 Pulling the caps from the heads of small boys and tossing them down areas.
1897 F. C. Moore How to build Home ii. 9 In city houses ‘areas’ should be constructed to secure light for cellar windows.
1967 S. Beckett No's Knife 50 I fetched my chair into the area and sat looking up into the skirts of the women passing by.
1994 E. Duffy Subaltern Ulysses v. 181 He climbed over the railings, let himself fall into the area, and entered through the area door.
2013 A. Johnson This Boy i. 22 Along Southam Street, I'd look into the areas, or ‘airies’, as we called the sunken enclosures in front of the basement dwellings.
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the world > food and drink > farming > gardening > garden > division or part of garden > [noun] > bed or plot
bedc1000
sollarc1440
garden stead1546
garden plot1548
quarter1565
square1615
orbell1635
area1658
earth-bed1757
1658 Sir T. Browne Garden of Cyrus i, in Hydriotaphia: Urne-buriall 95 The area or decussated plot, might be a perfect square.
1666 J. Rose Vineyard Vindicated iv. 22 That when the ridges come to be levell'd, the top of your sets may be even with the area.
1683 J. Reid Scots Gard'ner v. 23 Let the whole plot, Ridges, Bordures, and Beds be equally divided, and their Areas or Edges three Inches higher than the furrows or pathes.
4.
a. A region with vaguely defined boundaries, considered as a unit on the basis of its character, inhabitants, geography, or relative location.depressed area, inlet area, mountain area, natural area, etc.: see the first element.
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the world > the earth > region of the earth > [noun]
endc893
earthOE
coastc1315
plagea1382
provincea1382
regiona1382
countrya1387
partya1387
climatea1398
partc1400
nookc1450
corner1535
subregion1559
parcel1582
quart1590
climature1604
latitudea1640
area1671
district1712
zone1829
natural region1888
sector1943
the world > space > [noun] > unobstructed space > an unobstructed space
area1671
1671 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 6 3021 Another area [on the apparent surface of the sun] made up of other points [sc. sun spots] so small, that they could scarce be perceived.
1792 J. Belknap Hist. New-Hampsh. III. iii. iv. 44 A large area, called the plain. It is a dry heath, composed of rocks covered with moss.
1839 C. Darwin in R. Fitzroy & C. Darwin Narr. Surv. Voy. H.M.S. Adventure & Beagle III. xxii. 567 All the active volcanoes occur within the areas of elevation.
1849–52 Todd's Cycl. Anat. & Physiol. IV. ii. 1352/2 Here the true Negro area—the area occupied by men of the black skin, thick lip, depressed nose, and woolly hair—is exceedingly small.
1879 H. George Progress & Poverty ii. ii. 107 There are still in India great areas uncultivated.
1919 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 29 Nov. 718/2 There should be one teacher for every fifty blind in an urban area and one for every thirty-eight in a rural area.
1973 Nature 9 Feb. 360/2 The landing of Luna-21 and roll-out of Lunokhod-2 into the Mare Serenitatis area.
1978 R. A. Donkin Cistercians iii. 74 This low-lying, marshy area provided much good grazing.
2003 R. F. Shanahan Across Bridge 130 Pedestrians hurried along to their offices and shops in the area.
2010 M. E. Taylor et al. in P. Savill et al. Wytham Woods ii. 21 The Oxford area lies at the very heart of England.
b. A region or zone affected by a particular event or activity, especially a dangerous one such as a disaster, disease outbreak, war, etc.Frequently with modifying word.disaster area, search area, etc.: see the first element.
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1830 C. Lyell Princ. Geol. I. xxv. 439 The great area over which this Lisbon earthquake extended is very remarkable..nearly the whole of Europe, and even the West Indies, felt the shock on the same day.
1879 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 11 Jan. 62/1 As to the cause of a serious outbreak of diphtheria..in the centre of the infected area, two sewers, about six feet in diameter each..were carried by a double junction into a sewer only four feet ten inches in diameter.
1909 S. E. Piper Nevada Mouse Plague 1907–8 (U.S.D.A. Farmers' Bull. 352) 6 Along the lower border of the affected area, they [sc. the mice] did not exceed 1500 to the acre.
1950 Tobacco Dis. & Control (1958) (U.S. Dept. Agric. Farmers' Bull. 2023) 53 The area affected [by lightning damage] in the field is usually circular.
1992 J. Martin in China Airlift 50 Airstrips in the combat areas of the north Burma jungles now being used by fighters, bombers, troop carrier, search and rescue and liaison aircraft.
2008 B. J. Garrick Quantifying & controlling Catastrophic Risks 335 For asteroids with an impact energy greater than 10,000 megatons, the assumption is that everyone in the blast area is a fatality.
5.
a. A region or space with definite boundaries or defined extent.
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the world > space > [noun] > defined or limited portion of space
spacec1380
quantity?a1425
rooma1425
roomth1550
content1577
roomstead1600
canton1643
area1700
the world > space > [noun] > defined or limited portion of space > a particular extent or region
coastc1320
confinec1400
quarterc1400
region?1537
leet1567
demesne1597
floor1626
area1700
department1832
parallel1887
1700 C. Leigh Nat. Hist. Lancs. i. 192 That wonderful Arch, commonly call'd, the Devil's Arse, near Castleton, in Derbyshire, the Area where the Persons and the Houses are, where a great many of the poor Inhabitants live..reaches to the first Water which runs cross it.
1794 Lady's Mag. Nov. 578/2 The area between the palace of St Mark and the Zecca, is called the Broglo.
1811 W. Thom Hist. Aberdeen I. i. 35 Within the area described by the five Ports the city was confined till of late years.
1836 T. Dick Mental Illumination & Moral Improvem. Mankind ii. 59 An ample inclosed area around the school, into which a portion of the children..might occasionally be sent..so as to prevent the general annoyance of the teacher.
1863 Laws State N.Y. 574 The anchorage for vessels under quarantine shall be..within an area to be designated by buoys by the quarantine commissioners and health officer.
1920 A. R. Schultz Oil Possibilities Baxter Basin (U.S. Geol. Surv. Bull. 702) 104 In central Wyoming in the area between Casper, Lander, and Lost Soldier.
1934 Proc. Geologists' Assoc. 45 312 A narrow rim of the Pre-Cambrian granite, surrounding the area.
1989 D. Morrow & M. Keyes Conc. Hist. Sport in Canada 109 Four bases, called ‘byes’, marked the infield area.
2012 N.Y. Times Mag. 28 Oct. 38/3 They drew a boundary in blue ink on a map and began referring to the area inside as the ‘blue zone’.
b. With modifying word: a designated part of a larger (usually internal) space, intended for a specific activity.dining area, play area, reception area, etc.: see the first element.
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society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > a building > parts of building > [noun]
side1340
area1839
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > a building > parts of building > room > [noun] > specific part of
ruellec1400
nook?a1425
ingle-nook1773
area1839
living space1882
slip1886
cosy corner1894
bed-space1895
diner1907
1839 A. Ure Dict. Arts 824 The working area charged with the liquation cakes and charcoal.
1867 J. J. Moorman Mineral Waters xx. 320 The bathing area is surrounded by a beautiful grove.
1944 Pop. Sci. Aug. 158/2 My postwar kitchen must combine an efficient domestic laboratory and an attractive eating area.
1979 N. Hynd False Flags xv. 131 They entered a small cubicle converted into a work area. There was an old desk..with a disorder of papers.
2004 Gay Times Feb. 142/2 They'll have had a refurb, too, with more furniture in the chill-out-area.
c. A geographical region regarded as a unit for administrative, economic, or political purposes.Frequently with modifying word.catchment area, European economic area, sterling area, etc.: see the first element.
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society > authority > rule or government > territorial jurisdiction or areas subject to > an administrative division of territory > [noun]
purprisea1275
member?a1425
precinct1447
lordshipa1450
captainate1593
region1593
partiality1601
division1640
peopledom1657
convent1658
district1667
mastership1707
superintendency1798
area1849
1849 Morning Post 18 May 3/5 A small area [of taxation] would conduce to efficient and economical administration.
1871 Manch. Guardian 11 May 8 In counties the unions should be taken as the registration area, and the justices were to make such arrangements as would prevent the polling districts from overlapping the boundaries of the unions.
1941 Western Evening Herald (Plymouth) 11 June 3/4 The city is divided into areas, each under the control of an area commander.
1977 G. Williams Permanent Alliance ii. 40 He proposed a demilitarized area between East and West.
1997 C. Rallings & M. Thrasher in D. Denver et al. Brit. Elections & Party Rev. VIII. 114 Not all the wards in a local authority area are necessarily contested at every electoral cycle.
2013 D. A. Gaquin & G. W. Dunn State & Metrop. Area Data Bk. 413 The primary political divisions of most states are termed ‘counties’, which are the basic building blocks for metropolitan areas.
d. The region covered by or eligible for a particular service, such as provision of postal or health services, phone or broadband coverage, etc.Usually with modifying word.local area network, wide area network, etc.: see the first element.
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1897 Bristol Times & Mirror 21 June 6/5 No charges of the kind have been made except for messages delivered outside the free postal delivery area at night and on Sundays.
1924 Manch. Guardian 11 Jan. 5/7 The Sheffield Fire Brigade received a call, but could not respond because the Hope district is outside the area covered by the brigade.
1956 Jrnl. Royal Statist. Soc. 119 292 By the end of November, 1955, of the 8½ million adults in the coverage area about 17 per cent. (1,400,000) were able to receive the I.T.A. programmes.
1984 PR Newswire (Nexis) 20 June Roaming allows a cellular customer to obtain service outside of his home calling area.
1986 Sho-Ban (Fort Hall, Idaho) News 17 July 10 The service delivery area of the Fort Hall health unit.
2005 Wall St. Jrnl. 12 Sept. (Central ed.) r6/2 When customers roam out of their wireless broadband service area they won't lose their connection.
6. Association Football. = penalty area n. at penalty n. Compounds 2.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > characteristics of team ball games > [noun] > parts of playing area
outfield1851
goal line1862
centreline1863
goalside1865
territory1867
goalmouth1871
box1881
half1888
goal area1902
penalty area1905
orchard1913
penalty box1914
area1925
D1927
keyhole1936
penalty spot1937
six-yard box1954
1925 Times 2 Jan. 4/5 A free-kick was awarded to the Corinthians just outside the area.
1973 P. Arnold & C. Davis Hamlyn Bk. World Soccer 25/2 Alex James beat three defenders and fired in from the edge of the area.
2013 FourFourTwo Jan. 103/1 Every one of the striker's goals last season came from inside the area.
** A subdivision of (the surface of) any object, and related senses.† 8. Alopecia in a form in which the hair falls out in circumscribed patches; an instance of this; a patch of this kind. Cf. alopecia areata n. at alopecia n. Compounds. Obsolete.† 9. Anatomy. The lumen of a blood vessel; (occasionally) the interior part of any body of tissue. Obsolete.
7. A particular portion of the surface of an object, distinguished from its surroundings in some way. Also: a particular part of a solid body, without specific reference to its surface.In quot. 1640 in figurative context.
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the world > life > biology > physical aspects or shapes > specific areas or structures > [noun] > surface > part of surface
area1640
1640 G. Watts tr. F. Bacon Of Advancem. Learning Pref. 29 Which [experiments] of themselves were sufficient, were human Intellect equall, and a smooth inanticipated Table. But..the minds of men are after such strange waies besieged, that for to admit the true beams of things, a sincere and polisht Area is wanting [L. sincera & polita area prorsus desit].
1665 R. Hooke Micrographia 59 The bright area of the luminous body.
1668 Bp. J. Wilkins Ess. Real Char. v. 149 Not canorous; either that which hath on the breast an Area of white: or that which is of an ash colour.
1738 R. Smith Compl. Syst. Opticks I. ii. v. 116 When the rays..fall perpendicularly upon a fixt plane at O, their density will be uniform in every part of the inlightened area.
1804 B. S. Barton Elements Bot. (new ed.) ii. 173 The forms of the areas between the thread-like vessels composing the net are very different in different vegetables.
1838 W. N. Griffin Treat. Optics 6 Let A..be a small plane area illuminated by a surface BC of uniform brightness.
1880 New Sydenham Soc. Lexicon The germinative area..an opaque spot in which the embryo appears.
1922 Jrnl. Inst. Metals 28 66 Active local corrosion will take place beneath the string, in spite of the fact that access of oxygen to the corroded area is apparently greatly lessened.
1977 Hartford (Connecticut) Courant 2 Jan. 17 d You may find areas of wear, down into the wood. This will require staining to match the unworn areas.
1996 E. Clarke & K. Dewhurst Illustr. Hist. Brain Function (ed. 2) xiv. 150/1 With regard to motor activity, several different cortical areas have been implicated.
2010 Nature 30 Sept. 503/2 Grabbing hold of an injured area of the body can ameliorate acute pain, but how?
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the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of visible parts > disorders of hair > [noun] > loss of hair
alopeciaa1398
alopecya1400
red scall1578
foxes evil1607
fox-evil1659
area1661
madarosis1684
pelade1753
defluvium1817
trichorrhœa1860
hypotrichosis1896
pseudopelade1909
androgenic alopecia1970
androgenetic alopecia1977
1661 N. Culpeper & A. Cole tr. D. Sennert Art Chirurg.: 5th Bk. Pract. Physick iii. ii. iv. 2618/1 It is common unto both these Affects, that in them the Hairs fall off areatim (as they term it) and hence it is likewise that this Malady is in the general called Area.
1661 N. Culpeper & A. Cole tr. D. Sennert Art Chirurg.: 5th Bk. Pract. Physick iii. ii. iv. 2618/1 As these Beds when they are void of Plants are Naked and bare; so it is likewise in these Areæ; for here in certain places the skin the Skin appeareth smooth, bare, and slippery.
1770 D. Ritchie Treat. Hair 14 Area, is the falling off of the hair from certain parts of the head, so as to leave bare and bald patches here and there, arising from a bad and corrupt humour fretting the roots of the hair.
1833 J. Forbes et al. Cycl. Pract. Med. I. 49/2 Sometimes parts of the body are entirely deprived of their hairs, presenting smooth shining patches perfectly bald; these are the areæ of Celsus, the alopecia areata of Sauvages, the porrigo decalvans of Willan.
1894 Lancet 8 Sept. 573/1 The atrophic areæ are confined to the scalp.
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1683 W. Charleton Three Anat. Lect. ii. 62 The areæ or middle spaces of these little membranes are branched within the Ventricles of the heart into many little Tendinose Strings or cords.
1767 Philos. Trans. 1766 (Royal Soc.) 56 308 At this part the branches go off, between which there is a rising within the area of the aorta like a bird's tongue.
1796 Ess. by Soc. of Gentlemen Exeter 213 Their [sc. blood vessels'] areæ are increased both in length and diameter, owing to the well-known law of fluids pressing quaquaversum on their soft elastic coats.
1846 Half-yearly Abstr. Med. Sci. 3 177 The fibrous coat is contracted.., the area of the artery being thereby narrowed or closed.
1886 F. J. Gant Sci. & Pract. Surg. (ed. 3) I. ii. xvi. 471 The two inner coats..become adherent across the area of the vessel, just above and below the ligature.
10. A part or region of space, the sky, etc.
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1835 T. Spofford New Syst. Pract. Astron. vii. 41 The present seemingly absurd and puerile delineation [of the constellations],..where one figure runs into another, and numerous snakes twine through long and contorted areas of the heavens.
1877 Mercersburg Rev. Jan. 123 Matter, made up of an infinite number of dynamic centres or atoms, was universally diffused, covering areas of space on which future worlds were to be evolved.
1889 Nature 8 Aug. 345/1 For simple star-counts, we have only to substitute star-counts by magnitudes over selected areas of the sky.
1945 F. A. Berry et al. Handbk. Meteorol. xi. 903 Cloud forms and cloud species over large areas form synoptic entities (called nephsystems) usually surrounded by fair-weather areas of clear sky, cumulus humilis, or cirriform clouds.
1991 Omni Mar. 22/3 Electrons begin building up in a certain area of the ionosphere.
2009 Irish Times 3 June 12/3 If for some reason you do end up in a thunderstorm cell or area of turbulence, there are procedures for how to handle an aircraft.
II. Extent, size.
11. † b. The amount of three-dimensional space contained within something; = volume n. 7a. Obsolete. rare.
a. The quantity of two-dimensional space that is contained within given limits; the magnitude of this; superficial or two-dimensional size or extent.Area is typically measured in square units (e.g. square metres, square miles, etc.; see square adj. 1b) or, especially in the context of agricultural land, in acres or hectares.surface area: see surface n. Compounds 3. N.E.D. (1885) included area of planetary motion, defined as ‘the space contained by any arc of the orbit and the two radii which intercept it’, but the expression appears to be no more than a use of the general sense in a specific context, and evidence for its widespread use is wanting.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > extension in space > measurable spatial extent > [noun] > a) dimension(s) > property of having two dimensions > surface extent or area
superficialty?a1425
area?a1560
capacity?a1560
superficies1571
content1576
spread1584
continenta1608
containdure1623
surfacea1640
superficiality1690
?a1560 L. Digges Geom. Pract.: Pantometria (1571) iii. viii. sig. R j By the rules giuen in Planimetra, yee shall finde the area of the lesser Hexagonum.
1570 H. Billingsley tr. Euclid Elements Geom. i. f. 13v The area of a triangle, is that space, which is contayned within the sydes of a triangle.
1632 W. Forster tr. W. Oughtred Circles of Proportion i. vii. 38 The Diameter of a circle being giuen, to find the Area.
1686 R. Boyle Free Enq. Notion Nature 312 So the Bigness or Area of the Pupil varies.
1687 Philos. Trans. 1686–7 (Royal Soc.) 16 292 Our Author [sc. Isaac Newton]..having demonstrated that in all cases the Areas at the Center, described by a revolving Body, are proportional to the Times.
1710 R. Steele Tatler No. 179. ⁋6 The Area of my Green-House is a Hundred Paces long, Fifty broad.
1779 B. Talbot New Art of Land Measuring vi. 127 Multiply the sides A B and B C together, and that product by the factor, for the included angle at B, gives the area of the triangle.
1831 D. Brewster Treat. Optics v. 46 Increasing the size of the lens or the area of its surface.
1852 S. Norris (title) Norris's hand-book for locomotive engineers and machinists: comprising the proportions and calculations for constructing locomotives, manner of setting valves, tables of squares, cubes, areas, &c. &c.
1855 D. Brewster Mem. Life I. Newton II. xiv. 11 Newton regarded the areas of curves as generated by drawing the ordinate into the abscissa.
1906 S. Webb & B. Webb Eng. Local Govt. I. ii. 70 The great parish of Manchester..extended over an area of quite 54 square miles.
1960 T. K. Derry & T. I. Williams Short Hist. Technol. (1961) vi. 208 There were..studding-sails added to increase the area of the square-sails in fair weather.
1985 M. M. Zuckerman Arithmetic xxi. 186 Find the area of a rectangular parking lot that is 100 meters long and 60 meters wide.
2011 Xu Guoqi Strangers on Western Front i. 20 The French concession..had an original area of 250 acres.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > constitution of matter > density or solidity > [noun] > the solid body of something
area1625
volume1792
1625 N. Carpenter Geogr. Delineated i. viii. 201 The Areæ or spaces comprehended of Solide figures.
III. A division of thought, knowledge, or experience.
12.
a. A subdivision, specialism, or particular focus within an activity, profession, or branch of knowledge, study, etc.
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1808 C. Breck Fox Chase ii. i. 21 The present experiment shall be so satisfactory as to establish a new area in the philosophy of the mind.
1888 E. R. Lankester in Encycl. Brit. XXIV. 802/1 The area of biological knowledge..which relates to the breeding of animals and plants..may be called thremmatology.
1904 Electric Club Jrnl. 1 82 Each man has his area of responsibility in which he is perfectly free to follow his own work in his own way.
1939 Educ. Res. Bull. 18 226 The authors have worked in this specialized area.
1962 Harvard Law Rev. 75 762 It is within the banking agencies' area of expertise.
1985 M. Burch et al. Three Polit. Syst. i. 62 Corporatist patterns are much more likely to emerge in the economic/industrial policy-making areas and less likely to occur in social policy areas.
2005 Z. Smith On Beauty 406 Oh..well, that ain't my area, man—I bet you Elisha'll know, though—she does the world music.
b. Chiefly with of. The scope or sphere of an activity, profession, or branch of knowledge, study, etc.
ΚΠ
1818 Christian Observer Feb. 115/2 Publications of this kind now cover so wide a space in the area of literature that, as moral critics, we are anxious to determine their value.
1853 Rep. Deb. & Proc. Convent. revise & amend Constit. Commonw. Mass. 3 421/2 When I first read this resolution, I supposed that it was intended to throw open the whole area to free and perfect competition.
1925 Cent. Mag. Jan. 313/1 The area of knowledge has been cut into sharply separated fields each of which has developed with startling energy its own special presuppositions and technic.
1965 Jrnl. Conflict Resol. 9 414/2 The contributions of various social science disciplines to the study of social conflict in the area of international relations may be briefly described.
2005 W. Van Gerven in A. McDonnell Rev. Forty Years Community Law xii. 249 As regards contract law, that would mean legislation designed to cover the whole area of contractual relations, general and specific, including consumer protection, financial services, labour relations, and so on.
13. Chiefly with of. A notional space or region in or of the mind, experience, psyche, etc.
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the mind > mental capacity > [noun] > range
reach1542
eyeshot1600
scope1609
area1829
the mind > mental capacity > [noun] > range > as conceived by mind
area1829
1829 B. Dorn in tr. Ni'mat Allāh Hist. Afghans I. Annot. 108 Consider it, without further inquiry, as certain that I send him to be removed from the area of life to the punishment of death.
1849 G. C. Lewis Infl. Authority Matters of Opinion x. 392 The public at large adhere tenaciously to their old opinions,..the area of opinion is only enlarged by a gradual extension.
1883 Med. Press & Circular 22 Aug. 169/2 That mind..incapable of looking beyond its own area of feelings and prejudices.
1951 G. Greene End of Affair v. iv. 196 There had always been so much to talk about between us that whole areas of both our lives were blank like an early map, to be filled in later.
1957 G. Faber Jowett v. 85 The feeling which dictated his unequivocal choice of words..was strongly rooted in a still hateful area of memory.
2011 New Yorker 4 July 47/2 Each spouse chooses an area of grievance from a list called the Inventory of Marital Problems.
Phrases
P1.
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty n. (also with lower-case initials) (in the United Kingdom) a tract of land designated by a government agency as having natural features of outstanding beauty, and thus given protected status; = AONB n. at A n. Initialisms.
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the world > the earth > land > landscape > [noun] > type of
beauty spot1846
picturesque1852
moonscape1907
mudscape1908
postcard land1918
cultural landscape1919
dunescape1928
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty1949
wirescape1951
AONB1957
Marlboro Country1961
roofscaping1962
1949 Act 12, 13 & 14 Geo. VI c. 97 §87 The [National Parks] Commission may, by order made as respects any area in England or Wales, not being in a National park, which appears to them to be of such outstanding natural beauty that it is desirable that the Provisions of the Act relating to such areas should apply thereto, designate the area for the purposes of the Act as an area of outstanding natural beauty.
1992 National Trust Mag. Spring 24/2 Now, in its infinite wisdom, the Department of Transport has announced that its preferred route for a Winchelsea bypass is to be a dual carriageway running through that Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the Brede Valley.
2010 D. Corfield Roads with View 37 This Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty [sc. Ross] is an internationally important protected landscape.., and one of the most dramatic and scenic landscape areas in southern Britain.
P2.
area of operations n. (a) Military an area in which military operations are taking place; spec. one designated for a specific military operation or allocated to a particular unit; (b) (in general use) any area or sphere in which a specified activity takes place, or for which a given person is responsible.
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1820 H. T. Prinsep Narr. Polit. & Mil. Trans. Brit. India x. 212 In Guzerât a corps was also to be formed, to penetrate in a northeasterly direction, and complete the cordon of the intended area of operations.
1886 Pop. Sci. Monthly June 278/1 The punctured clover-leaf weevil has steadily and rapidly extended its area of operations.
1904 Times 16 May 10/1 This reduces the field army available throughout the entire area of operations to 126,000 infantry.
1913 Econ. Jrnl. 23 107 A large area of operations may be secured by one municipality trading outside its boundaries.
1964 Internat. Affairs 40 198 It is important for United Nations forces to have full freedom of movement within the area of operations.
1993 Time Internat. 25 Jan. 29/2 Among his mistakes:..Overextending the Mob's traditional area of operations.
2011 S. Russell We got Him! (2012) v. 178 Although not a tank mission, we needed the manpower, and this was his area of operations.
Compounds
C1.
a. General attributive (in sense 2b).† area-head n. [head n.1 17] Obsolete rare
area bell n. now rare
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1812 'Miss Byron' Englishman III. i. 68 The area bell rung, and in a few minutes a note was presented to our heroine.
1836 C. Dickens Sketches by Boz 1st Ser. I. 52 [I] rang the area-bell.
1916 Munsey's Mag. Oct. 156/1 And then there came, not a ring at the area bell, but a knock, which managed to be somehow bold and at the same time furtive.
area door n.
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1764 J. Prestage Particular of Argyll House 3 An iron lock and key, latch, bolt and bell to the fore area door.
1864 C. Dickens Our Mutual Friend (1865) I. i. v. 34 A piece of fat black water-pipe which trailed itself over the area-door.
1913 C. Mackenzie Sinister St. I. i. iv. 62 The area door slammed.
1994 E. Duffy Subaltern Ulysses v. 181 Bloom entered his own home (he climbed over the railings, let himself fall into the area, and entered through the area door).
area gate n.
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1799 E. Meeke Harcourt II. xii. 317 Her Ladyship..caught Archy in the very act of attempting to force the area-gate.
1841 C. Dickens Barnaby Rudge xxxv. 141 Area-gates is left open.
1917 T. S. Eliot Prufrock & Other Observ. 31 I am aware of the damp souls of housemaids Sprouting despondently at area gates.
1935 Scotsman 15 July 13/3 Two of his friends as young men passed the area gate in Blythwood Square of the Smith family on the crucial evening.
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1841 C. Dickens Barnaby Rudge viii. 284 He descended the steps, and..prepared..for his daily occupation; which was to retail at the area-head above pennyworths of broth.
area railing n.
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1798 in J. Rigge Observ. Statutes for registering Deeds App. 99 The vaults thereof completely turned, and the front area railing put up, upon the plan and dimensions mentioned.
1836 C. Dickens Sketches by Boz 2nd Ser. 20 The hungry wayfarer..plods wearily by the area railings.
1946 R. Campbell Talking Bronco 18 Like a cane That's rattled down an area-railing.
2004 Times Lit. Suppl. 18 June 14/4 He is impaled on the spears of Mrs. Filmer's area railings.
area steps n.
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1785 Proc. Old Bailey 14 Dec. 9/2 I was going down from the area steps, I swear to the boy, I saw him run away with the bundle.
1836 C. Dickens Sketches by Boz 1st Ser. I. 147 The area and the area steps..were..clean and bright.
1991 National Trust Mag. Spring 11/3 Such details as whether tradesmen negotiated with the servants at the front door or down the area steps.
b. attributive. U.S. Of, belonging to, or residing in a particular area; local.Chiefly in journalistic contexts.
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1945 Washington Post 6 Jan. 1/4 A District bar member is one of three Washington men killed in action, another area man is missing.
1950 Syracuse (N.Y.) Herald-Amer. 12 Nov. 45/1 He..served as area dean..before his death Tuesday.
1966 Press-Courier (Oxnard, Calif.) 31 May 1/8 Due to recent sensational publicity, few area residents are unaware of the nature of LSD's ‘hallucination powers’.
1990 Columbia Law Rev. 90 442 Low-cost housing for area workers.
2005 Herald-Times (Bloomington, Indiana) 24 Oct. a1/4 The third annual Career Exploration Day—which allows students with disabilities the opportunity to job shadow at area businesses.
C2. † area-sneak v. slang Obsolete rare intransitive to get into the lower floors of a house unobserved via the area (sense 2b) in order to commit petty theft; to commit theft of this type.
area bishop n. Christian Church (chiefly Anglican Church) a bishop with authority over one of the parts of a subdivided diocese, as delegated by the diocesan bishop.
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1918 Liberty College Bull. 25 Mar. 320 He would recommend the organization of such composite movements by episcopal areas, subject to the approval of the Area Bishop and the cabinets and leaders of the Annual Conferences.
1970 Church Times 6 Feb. 1/5 A proposal to administer the diocese of Oxford as four separate areas each the full responsibility of a bishop is made in a report by a working party... The area bishops would each be assisted by an archdeacon.
2008 Church Times 28 Nov. 27/2 I shall also expect any future area bishop to be willing to license and institute or collate incumbents, regardless of gender.
area board n. chiefly British an official body with administrative responsibility for an industry or service (e.g. mining, health, education, etc.) in a particular area or region.
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1918 Hansard Commons 18 Nov. 3179 The Glasgow Area Board refused to recommend the release of these machines on the grounds:— (a) That Messrs. Scott and Calder had no premises in which to instal them [etc.].
1920 Act 10 & 11 George V c. 50. §7 Where a district is co-extensive with an area, the district committee shall perform the functions of the area board as well as of the district committee.
1994 T. Byrne Local Govt. in Brit. (ed. 6) iii. 71 Local government in Ulster was reorganized into twenty-six District..Councils and nine Area Boards.
area bombardment n. Military = area bombing n.; an instance of this.
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society > armed hostility > hostilities in the air > [noun] > air operation > bombing raid > dropping of bombs > manner of
area bombardment1918
straddling1919
pattern-bombing1933
terror-bombing1933
dive-bombing1935
firebombing1935
blind-bombing1940
blitzing1940
coventrating1940
nuisance bombing1940
scatter bombing1940
coventration1942
carpet bombing1943
obliteration bombing1943
skip-bombing1943
shuttle bombing1944
atom bombing1945
atomic bombing1945
clobbering1948
loft-bombing1956
society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > discharge of firearms > management of artillery > [noun] > bombardment
battery1548
cannonade1562
cannonading1637
bombarding1687
bomb battery1695
bombardment1702
cannon fire1725
bombard1807
shelling1860
hate1915
barrage1916
box barrage1916
creeping barrage1916
area bombardment1918
area shoot1919
shoot1941
stonk1944
1918 Gas Warfare (Army War Coll.) I. i. 96 The number of batteries to be employed and the duration of the bombardment is the same as in the case of a medium area bombardment.
1944 Hansard Lords 5th Ser. CXXX. 739 Do the Government understand the full force of what area bombardment is doing and is destroying now?
2011 Weekend Austral. (Nexis) 5 Nov. 19 The American people similarly applauded the area bombardment of arsenal cities.
area bombing n. Military the bombing of a general area rather than a specific target; cf. carpet bombing n.
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1941 Life 29 Dec. 50/1 In area bombing of civilian targets the Germans have used smaller bombs and on London have lavished great quantities of ‘general purpose’ 100-pounders.
1966 World Politics 15 427 An attack experimentally designed to inflict maximum destruction on a German town was ordered, the ‘area bombing’ attack being executed on Mannheim.
2006 D. Edgerton Shock of Old i. 14 The USSBS came out against the RAF and its predominant practice of area bombing, but particular reports supported the attacks on transportation and synthetic oil.
area dean n. Anglican Church (originally) a dean with authority over one of the parts of a subdivided rural deanery (see rural adj. 4); (now) a rural dean, esp. one with responsibility for an urban area; = dean n.1 5a.
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society > faith > church government > member of the clergy > clerical superior > rural dean > [noun]
deanc1380
pleban1481
rural dean1511
dean of Christianity1695
area dean1972
1972 Times 4 July 19/4 Under reorganization of the Hull Deanery, the Bishop of Hull..also to be Rural Dean of Hull, and the following to be area Deans: [etc.].
1998 Church Times 30 Jan. 17/5 Dr Taylor is Area Dean of Ealing.
2005 Birmingham Post (Nexis) 14 July 6 The Rev Stewart Jones..is currently priest-in-charge of All Saints, Canterbury, as well as diocesan missioner, area dean and a provincial canon of Canterbury Cathedral.
area denial n. Military the practice of rendering an area too hazardous (usually by the placing of mines or similar devices) for an enemy to occupy or cross it; frequently attributive.
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1943 Dispensatory U.S.A. (ed. 23) 1313/2 Chemical Warfare Agents... Classification of physiological agents..may be based on the degree of persistence of the agent, on its tactical use (casualty, harassing or area-denial agents), or according to physiological action.
1971 New Scientist 17 June 692/2 Vast quantities of CS have been dropped in pursuit of the policy of area denial.
1991 Britain's Gulf War 38/3 Each JP-233 pod dispensed..15 2.2kg area-denial weapons designed to inhibit subsequent airfield repair operations.
2012 Wall St. Jrnl. 4 Jan. a12/3 The Chinese military embarked on a military modernization effort designed to blunt U.S. power in the Pacific by developing what U.S. military strategists dubbed ‘anti-access, area denial’ technologies.
area manager n. a person who manages a section of a business or organization in a particular area.
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1913 Bell Telephone News Jan. 32/2 A conference of area managers of the Grand Rapids district was held at the Livingston Hotel.
1957 Jrnl. Marketing 21 459/1 Pfizer divides the world into seven areas with an area manager in each in charge of sales training, advertising, promotion, etc.
2014 Western Daily Press (Bristol) (Nexis) 4 July 30 Her father..was an area manager for Marks & Spencer and got posted all over the UK.
area navigation n. a method of navigation which enables an aircraft to follow any course within a network of fixed points relative to which its position can be determined, rather than having to navigate a course directly from one such fixed point to another; navigation by this means.
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1962 Flying Dec. 34/2 The unit is..a pictorial course line computer, and to appreciate it the pilot must think in terms of ‘area navigation’.
1970 Guardian 3 Mar. 12/8 Decca had a long and bitter fight to establish its sophisticated area navigation system in the United States.
2001 G. R. A. Sandell in C. R. Spitzer Digital Avionics Handbk. xxxi. 9 To provide the accuracy necessary for the area navigation required in today's airspace system..radio updating is necessary.
area rug n. North American a rug covering only part of the floor, or used in a particular part of a room.
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society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > a building > furniture and fittings > floor-covering > [noun] > rug > types of, generally
shag1634
hearthrug1790
buffalo-robe1804
hooked rug1880
area rug1941
hook rug1951
1941 Lawton (Okla.) Constit. & Morning Press 29 Oct. 2/2 (advt.) For your approval—a collection of the finest furniture decorative accessories carpeting area rugs upholstery and drapery materials lovely appointments for every room in your home.
1961 Britannica Bk. of Year 1959 (U.S.) 752/2 Area rug, not permanently fastened, for covering ‘living areas’, ‘dining areas’ and the like.
2005 M. M. Frisby Wifebeater ii. 9 The couch, the area rug, and even her chessboard was red.
area rule n. Aeronautics in the design of transonic and supersonic aircraft, the principle that the longitudinal variation of the cross-sectional area of an aircraft should approximate to that of the shape subject to the least drag at the speed in question.
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1953 R. T. Whitcomb Zero-Lift Drag Characteristics i, in NACA Conf. Aerodynam. High-speed Aircraft This paper is concerned primarily with the application of the ‘area rule’ to the interpretation and improvement of the drag-rise characteristics of wing-body combinations at transonic and moderate supersonic speeds.
1986 Aircraft Illustr. July 380/3 It was the F-102's failure to exceed Mach 1..that led to the evolution of the Area Rule.
2007 Flying Aug. 58/2 Many jets apply the area rule near the engines, but the shape is more dramatic in the Premier because of its wide fuselage.
area-ruled adj. Aeronautics (of a fuselage, aircraft, etc.) designed or constructed in accordance with the area rule (see area rule n.).
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1956 Aircraft Jan. 17/1 The ‘area-ruled’ fuselage of this delta fighter is only partially visible from this aspect.
1976 Aviation Week 17 May 11/2 A straight-bladed propfan with an area-ruled spinner..is scheduled for tests in July.
2002 J. D. Anderson Airplane vii. 320 The comparison between the drag coefficients for the conventional YF-102..and the area-ruled YF-102A..dramatically illustrates the tremendous transonic drag reduction to be obtained with the use of the area rule.
area seat n. now rare a seat in the area (sense 2a) of a theatre; usually in plural.
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1847 Bury & Norwich Post 18 Aug. 3/2 (advt.) Area Seats—which will be reserved—One Guinea each. Side Galleries and Sides of the Orchestra—10s. 6d. each.
1859 Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper 19 June 8/3 Those whose names are so dear to the occupants, not only of area seats and sofa stalls, but of dress circle and private boxes.
1922 Musical Times 1 Oct. 691/1 Assuming that one goes to hear the music to the best advantage, these area seats are far better than the front rows of the stalls.
area shoot n. Military (now historical and rare) an instance of bombing a general area rather than a specific target; cf. area bombing n.
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society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > discharge of firearms > management of artillery > [noun] > bombardment
battery1548
cannonade1562
cannonading1637
bombarding1687
bomb battery1695
bombardment1702
cannon fire1725
bombard1807
shelling1860
hate1915
barrage1916
box barrage1916
creeping barrage1916
area bombardment1918
area shoot1919
shoot1941
stonk1944
1919 Jrnl. Industr. & Engin. Chem. 1 Sept. 830/1 Certain chemicals, such as mustard gas..are also lethal and may either be fired in concentrations or area shoots.
2004 P. Barton et al. Beneath Flanders Fields i. 25 Increased precision in gunnery was inevitable, and area shoots followed, intense bombardments designed to obliterate a farm, a trench, a road junction, or a larger chosen patch of ground.
area sneak n. slang †(a) the practice of getting into the lower floors of a house unobserved via the area (sense 2b) in order to commit petty theft (obsolete rare); (b) a petty thief who steals in this way (now rare) (historical in later use).
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the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > steal [verb (intransitive)] > steal sneakingly
area sneak1819
creep1914
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > thief > burglar > [noun] > who enters through unlocked door or window
area sneak1819
sneaksman1819
sneak-thief1859
parlour-jumper1860
prowler1912
stair dancer1958
1819 J. H. Vaux New Vocab. Flash Lang. in Memoirs II. 153 Area sneak, or Area slum, the practice of slipping unperceived down the areas of private houses, and robbing the lower apartments of plate or other articles.
1832 Morning Post 21 Dec. Those thieves who prowl about the metropolis called ‘area sneaks’.
1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby lix. 584 Why wasn't I a thief, swindler, housebreaker, area sneak?
1906 Blackwood's Mag. Apr. 709/2 Women whose attenuated forms and hectic cheeks bear testimony to their calling; pickpockets, garotters, area sneaks, and thieves ready to begin the labours of the day.
2008 J. D. Bennett London Confederates i. 22 ‘Snoozers’ booked a room at a hotel, then burgled the rooms of the other guests; ‘area sneaks’ called at the kitchen doors of big houses in the hope of finding something to steal.
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1862 J. Binny in H. Mayhew London Labour (new ed.) Extra vol. 311/2 Most of the lodgers were out prowling over the various districts of the metropolis, some picking pockets, others area-sneaking.
1873 M. E. Braddon Strangers & Pilgrims iii. x. 332 Fancy his coming area-sneaking here while his Ludship's out of the way!
area-sneaking n. slang rare the practice of getting into the lower floors of a house unobserved via the area (sense 2b) in order to commit petty theft.
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1835 Poor Man's Guardian 11 July Such not very chivalrous enterprises as area-sneaking, or tugging at the watch-chains of an old gentleman who does not wear braces.
1906 Daily Chron. 14 May 6/3 To prevent burglary and area-sneaking.
area study n. originally U.S. a study of a given geographical location or particular demographic group; (in plural) the branch of knowledge relating to this.
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1941 Supply Responses in Milk Production (Techn. Bull. U.S. Dept. Agric. No. 750.) 83 Full discussion of the significance of this is reserved for a later publication now planned to bring together the results of a number of area studies.
1947 R. B. Hall Area Stud. p. iii Area studies are by their very nature cross-disciplinary.
1957 G. Heckscher Study Compar. Govt. & Politics ii. 88 What problems should be introduced into an area study?..the mechanics of politics..; the legislative procedure..; existing forms of self-government.
1974 German Q. 47 535 We..could conceivably teach area studies not as a handed-down adjunct to something else, but as a degree program with its own purposes and its own academic logic.
2003 A. K. Mandal Sundarbans of India vi. 206 A number of area studies..for development of special areas like hill-terrain, desert area, drought-prone area, backward area and under-served area.
2009 M. Blasco & M. Zølner Teaching Cultural Skills vi. 114 Our focus here is on teaching the cultural dimension of Area Studies.
areaway n. chiefly U.S. a sunken court giving access to the basement of a house (cf. sense 2b); (also) an area serving as a passageway.
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1848 C. Burdett Gambler i. 9 While leaning against the railing of an area way, instinctively my eyes wandered to the windows of a house on the other side of the street.
1907 Chicago Evening Post 4 May 3 The building is connected with the main hospital by a covered areaway.
1931 D. Runyon Guys & Dolls (1932) iii. 56 Then Louie gets the back door open and takes it on the lam through an areaway.
1981 A. Perry Resurrection Row vi. 111 Women sat in areaways, hands blue with cold, presiding over rows of worn-looking shoes; and light glimmered from below-street rooms.
2004 B. Moselle 2005 National Home Improvem. Estimator xiii. 345 You can add natural light with area walls or an areaway sloped so sunlight can reach basement windows.
area-wide adj. and adv. (a) adj. of, relating to, or extending over an entire area; (b) adv. throughout an area.
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the world > space > extension in space > [adjective] > extending over
overspreading1583
area-wide1913
1913 Independent (N.Y.) 28 Aug. 506/1 Raising a dust storm in a city street to the proportions of an area-wide tornado.
1951 Decisions Public Utilities Comm. Calif. 51 142 The network of transmission lines permits curtailments to be made area-wide when necessary.
1968 R. C. Cease & J. R. Saroff Metrop. Exper. in Alaska vii. 262 The committee quickly recommended that the hospital..be turned over to the borough and the costs spread areawide.
2010 New Yorker 6 Dec. 31/2 Restrained..driving in residential areas..is best achieved..by area-wide speed limits of twenty miles per hour.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2015; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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