Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense farms, present participle farming, past tense, past participle farmed
1. countable noun
A farm is an area of land, together with the buildings on it, that is used for growing crops or raising animals, usually in order to sell them.
Farms in France are much smaller than those in the United States or even Britain.
2. verb
If you farm an area of land, you grow crops or keep animals on it.
They farmed some of the best land in Scotland. [VERB noun]
He has lived and farmed in the area for 46 years. [VERB]
Synonyms: cultivate, work, plant, operate More Synonyms of farm
3. countable noun [noun NOUN]
A mink farm or a fish farm, for example, is a place where a particular kind of animal or fish is bred and kept in large quantities in order to be sold.
...trout fresh from a local trout farm.
Phrasal verbs:
See farm out
More Synonyms of farm
farm in British English
(fɑːm)
noun
1.
a.
a tract of land, usually with house and buildings, cultivated as a unit or used to rear livestock
b.
(as modifier)
farm produce
c.
(in combination)
farmland
2.
a unit of land or water devoted to the growing or rearing of some particular type of vegetable, fruit, animal, or fish
a fish farm
3.
an installation for storage
4.
a district of which one or more taxes are leased
5. history
a.
a fixed sum paid by an individual or group for the right of collecting and retaining taxes, rents, etc
b.
a fixed sum paid regularly by a town, county, etc, in lieu of taxes
c.
the leasing of a source of revenue to an individual or group
d.
a fixed tax, rent, etc, paid regularly
verb
6. (transitive)
a.
to cultivate (land)
b.
to rear (stock, etc) on a farm
7. (intransitive)
to engage in agricultural work, esp as a way of life
8. (transitive)
to look after a child for a fixed sum
9.
a.
to collect the moneys due and retain the profits from (a tax district, business, etc) for a specified period on payment of a sum or sums
b.
to operate (a franchise) under similar conditions
Derived forms
farmable (ˈfarmable)
adjective
Word origin
C13: from Old French ferme rented land, ultimately from Latin firmāre to settle
farm in American English
(fɑrm)
noun
1.
a. Obsolete
a fixed sum payable at regular intervals, as rent or taxes
b.
the letting out, for a fixed amount, of the collection of taxes, with the privilege of keeping all that is collected
c.
the condition of being let out at a fixed rent
2.
a district of a country leased out by a government for the collection of taxes
3.
a piece of land (with house, barns, etc.) on which crops or animals are raised: orig.,such land let out to tenants
4.
any place where certain things are raised
a tract of water for raising fish is a fish farm
5. Sport
a minor-league team, esp. a baseball team, having an agreement with a major-league team to train its young or inexperienced players
: in full farm club (or team)
verb transitive
6.
to cultivate (land)
7.
to cultivate or rear (plants or animals) on a farm
8.
to collect the taxes and other fees of (a business) on a commission basis or for a fixed amount
9.
to turn over to another for a fee
verb intransitive
10.
to work on or operate a farm; raise crops or animals on a farm
Idioms:
farm out
Word origin
ME < OFr ferme < ML firma, fixed payment, farm < firmare, to farm, lease, orig., to make a contract < L, to make firm, secure < firmus, firm1
More idioms containing
farm
buy the farm
COBUILD Collocations
farm
family farm
remote farm
run a farm
Examples of 'farm' in a sentence
farm
The system is skewed to the largest farms.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Formerly a dairy farm, the house sits in a farmyard setting flanked by historic buildings.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Exemptions include farms, fish farms and churches.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
The area 's fell farms are regarded as a vital part of its character.
The Sun (2016)
Until recently, it was standard practice to give young farm animals low doses to speed their growth and maximise profit.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The technology's inventors suggest harnessing solar power from roads will be a more publicly acceptable way of producing green energy than large solar farms.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
But when the time came to strike out on his own, instead of livestock farming he plumped for growing and selling organic fruit and vegetables.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Their land was unproductive because their goal was to farm areas that were waste or common.
Diane Purkiss The English Civil War: A People's History (2006)
Your report suggests that houses near wind farms have lost value.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
So far no fish farm has admitted responsibility.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
These produced the codes of practice for the management of farm livestock.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
This switch was favorable to tenants who leased large farms.
Shubert, Adrian A Social History of Modern Spain (1991)
So many farm animals bred and born.
Tepper, Sheri S. A Plague of Angels (1993)
There is no evidence of the condition in wild trout or farmed salmon or trout.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
This steak house has organically farmed beef and locally raised bison.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
He also wants a reduction in the use of antibiotics in livestock and farmed fish.
The Sun (2016)
It suits us to do so because we have something invested in farming them in large numbers.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
One of my frustrations is guest speakers who come loaded with farm humor and animal illustrations.
Christianity Today (2000)
They bought the chickens at a farm on the way and took them into the hotel in boxes.
The Sun (2012)
He wants them to consider new ways of farming that sharply reduce sheep numbers and so promote wildlife.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
There are five cases in the county on four farms spread over 50 miles.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Why do we need a German firm to build a solar farm on our land?
The Sun (2013)
There are no fruit farms in Iceland.
The Times Literary Supplement (2012)
He comes from farming stock and has a great eye for'young horses.
The Sun (2013)
She explained that she lived 1½ miles along a forest track through woods and farm land.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Of course the flowers and fruit on the farms had given place to vegetables, but that had happened long before the war.
Len Deighton Bomber
In other languages
farm
British English: farm /fɑːm/ NOUN
A farm is an area of land consisting of fields and buildings, where crops are grown or animals are raised.
Both boys liked to work on the farm.
American English: farm
Arabic: مَزْرَعَة
Brazilian Portuguese: fazenda
Chinese: 农场
Croatian: farma
Czech: farma hospodářství
Danish: gård
Dutch: boerderij
European Spanish: granja
Finnish: maatila
French: ferme agriculture
German: Bauernhof
Greek: αγρόκτημα
Italian: fattoria
Japanese: 農場
Korean: 농장
Norwegian: gård
Polish: farma
European Portuguese: exploração agrícola
Romanian: fermă
Russian: ферма
Latin American Spanish: granja
Swedish: bondgård
Thai: ที่เพาะปลูกและเลี้ยงสัตว์
Turkish: çiftlik
Ukrainian: ферма
Vietnamese: trang trại
British English: farm VERB
If you farm an area of land, you grow crops or keep animals on it.
They farmed some of the best land in the country.
They farmed with pride, loving their land and its native trees and flowers.
American English: farm
Brazilian Portuguese: cultivar
Chinese: 耕种
European Spanish: cultivar
French: cultiver
German: bebauen
Italian: coltivare
Japanese: 耕作する
Korean: 경작하다
European Portuguese: cultivar
Latin American Spanish: cultivar
All related terms of 'farm'
baby farm
a place that houses and takes care of babies for a fee
cube farm
an office which is divided up by mid-height partitions to create separate work spaces
farm-bike
a motorcycle built for off-road travel
farm out
If you say that someone farms out work, especially work that you would normally expect them to do themselves, you mean that they give it to other people to do.
farm shop
a shop that sells farm produce
farm team
a sports team in a smaller or lower league that is affiliated to one in a larger or higher league
farm-toun
a farmhouse together with its outbuildings
fat farm
a health farm or similar establishment to which people go to lose weight
fish farm
a place where fish are reared for commercial purposes
hill farm
a farm in a high area, usually concentrating on sheep , because of the lack of winter fodder
home farm
(esp formerly) a farm belonging to and providing food for a large country house
pig farm
a farm where pigs are kept and reared
poor farm
a farm for paupers , supported by a county or other local government
stud farm
A stud farm is a place where horses are bred.
tank farm
an expanse of land on which a number of fuel oil storage tanks are located
tree farm
an area of forest in which the growth of the trees is managed on a commercial basis
wave farm
a collection of machines designed to generate electricity by harnessing the kinetic energy of sea waves
web farm
a large website that uses two or more servers to handle user requests
wind farm
A wind farm is a place where windmills are used to convert the power of the wind into electricity.
work farm
a farm on which the workers are short-term prisoners convicted of less serious crimes
Brook Farm
an experimental communist community established by writers and scholars in West Roxbury, Massachusetts , from 1841 to 1847
cattle farm
a farm on which cattle are raised
click farm
an office where a group of people are hired to fraudulently obtain revenue for a website that uses pay-per-click online advertising
dairy farm
a farm which has cows producing milk , rather than for beef
family farm
A farm is an area of land, together with the buildings on it, that is used for growing crops or raising animals, usually in order to sell them.
farm animal
an animal that is reared on a farm
farm cheese
a mild , firm pressed cheese
farm worker
a person who is hired to work on a farm
fruit farm
a farm where fruit is grown
funny farm
a psychiatric hospital
granny farm
a home where old people are cared for
health farm
A health farm is a hotel where people go to get fitter or lose weight by exercising and eating special food.
mixed farm
a farm which combines arable and livestock farming
oyster farm
a place where oysters are cultivated for food or pearls
prison farm
a farm attached to a prison , where prisoners carry out hard labour
puppy farm
an establishment , often with poor conditions for housing the animals, where puppies are bred for profit
remote farm
A farm is an area of land, together with the buildings on it, that is used for growing crops or raising animals, usually in order to sell them.
salmon farm
an enclosed area of water devoted to the rearing of salmon for food
server farm
a collection of computer servers (usually in a business, organization, etc) used to accomplish tasks for which multiple machines are needed
sewage farm
a place where sewage is treated, esp for use as manure
sheep farm
an area of land used for raising sheep
stock farm
a farm on which livestock is bred
troll farm
an organized group of internet trolls aiming to disrupt an online community
trout farm
a lake or other enclosed area of water where trout are bred for food
truck farm
a market garden
battery farm
a farm that uses batteries for raising poultry
factory farm
a farm in which animals are bred and fattened using modern industrial methods
farm labourer
a person engaged in physical work on a farm
farm produce
agricultural products regarded collectively
organic farm
a farm where organic methods are used for agriculture and animal husbandry
Chinese translation of 'farm'
farm
(fɑːm)
n(c)
农(農)场(場) (nóngchǎng) (个(個), gè)
vt
[land]耕种(種) (gēngzhòng)
vi
务(務)农(農) (wùnóng)
(noun)
Definition
a unit of land or water devoted to the growing or rearing of some particular type of fruit, animal, or fish
We have a small farm.
Synonyms
smallholding
holding
ranch mainly US, Canadian)
farmstead
land
Good agricultural land is in short supply.
station (Australian, New Zealand)
acres
vineyard
plantation
croft (Scottish)
grange
homestead
acreage
(verb)
Definition
to do agricultural work as a way of life
They had farmed the same land for generations.
Synonyms
cultivate
She cultivated a small garden of her own.
work
Farmers worked the fertile valleys.
plant
operate
The machine operates at a pace of just 2 miles per hour.
till the soil
grow crops on
bring under cultivation
keep animals on
practise husbandry
phrasal verb
See farm something out
Additional synonyms
in the sense of land
Definition
ground owned as property
Good agricultural land is in short supply.
Synonyms
property,
grounds,
estate,
acres,
real estate,
realty,
acreage,
real property,
homestead (US, Canadian),
l&
in the sense of operate
Definition
to work
The machine operates at a pace of just 2 miles per hour.