orchard

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   An area of land where fruit or nut trees are grown.

   In autumn we picked apples in my grandfather's orchard.

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Simplified etymology

Orchard comes from Old English, in which it was a general name for a garden. Its first element probably derives from Latin hortus, meaning “garden,” while its second element is yard.

From Middle English orchard, orcherd, from Old English orċeard, ortġeard, a compound of *ort (probably from Proto-Germanic *urtiz, a dissimilated variant of Proto-Germanic *wurt- (“wort (plant)”), later incorrectly associated with unrelated Latin hortus (“garden”)) + ġeard (see hortyard and yard, which ironically is etymologically linked with hortus). Cognate with Swedish örtagård (“herb garden”), Gothic 𐌰𐌿𐍂𐍄𐌹𐌲𐌰𐍂𐌳𐍃 (aurtigards, “orchard”), Old High German orzōn (“to cultivate a field”). Equivalent to wort + yard. More at root.

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