acre

¹

[ey-ker]

noun

1. a common measure of area: in the U.S. and U.K., 1 acre equals 4,840 square yards (4,047 square meters) or 0.405 hectare; 640 acres equals one square mile.

2. acres,

   1. lands; land.

      wooded acres.

   2. Informal.,  large quantities.

      acres of Oriental rugs.

3. Archaic.,  a plowed or sown field.

Acre

²

[ah-kruh, ah-ker, ey-ker]

noun

1. a state in W Brazil. 58,900 sq. mi. (152,550 sq. km). Rio Branco.

2. a seaport in NW Israel: besieged and captured by Crusaders 1191.

Acre

¹

noun

1. a state of W Brazil: mostly unexplored tropical forests; acquired from Bolivia in 1903. Capital: Rio Branco. Pop: 586 942 (2002). Area: 152 589 sq km (58 899 sq miles)

2. Arabic name: `Akka. Hebrew name: `Akko. Old Testament name: Accho. a city and port in N Israel, strategically situated on the Bay of Acre in the E Mediterranean: taken and retaken during the Crusades (1104, 1187, 1191, 1291), taken by the Turks (1517), by Egypt (1832), and by the Turks again (1839). Pop: 45 600 (2001)

acre

²

/ ˈeɪkə /

noun

1. a unit of area used in certain English-speaking countries, equal to 4840 square yards or 4046.86 square metres

2. (plural)

   1. land, esp a large area

   2. informal,  a large amount

      he has acres of space in his room

3. to graze cows on the verge of a road

acre

1. A unit of area in the US Customary System, used in land and sea floor measurement and equal to 43,560 square feet or 4,047 square meters.

Other Word Forms

• half-acre noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of acre¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English aker, Old English æcer; cognate with Old Frisian ekker, Old Saxon akkar, Old High German ackar ( German Acker ), Old Norse akr, Gothic akers, Latin ager, Greek agrós, Sanskrit ájra-; acorn, agrarian, agrestic, agriculture, agro-

Word History and Origins

Origin of acre¹

Old English æcer field, acre; related to Old Norse akr, German Acker, Latin ager field, Sanskrit ajra field

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. forty acres and a mule. mule.

Example Sentences

“They are working cooperatively with the investigation into the Pickett fire,” said Sam Singer, a spokesperson for One True Vine, a company that includes Hundred Acre wines.

From Los Angeles Times

"It's my point of view. It was my action," she says in the grounds of Castle Acre Priory, Norfolk.

From BBC

Hezbollah said its fighters had fired a barrage of rockets at an Israeli military base north of the town of Acre, and that it had also targeted troops stationed in several Israeli border communities.

From BBC

Hidden in the rubble were the falafel restaurant whose owner learned his trade over the border in Acre, Israel; the sweets shop; the stationary store that was a one-stop shop for kids returning to school.

From Los Angeles Times

Another rocket barrage hit two factory buildings in the northern Israeli towns of Acre and Kiryat Bialik, causing damage but no injuries.

From BBC

Related Words

• acreage 
• estate 
• plot 
• property