Area \A"re*a\ ([=a]"r[-e]*[.a]; 277), n.; pl. Areas (-[.a]z) .
   [L. area a broad piece of level ground. Cf. Are, n.]
   1. Any plane surface, as of the floor of a room or church, or
      of the ground within an inclosure; an open space in a
      building.
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            The Alban lake . . . looks like the area of some
            vast amphitheater.                    --Addison.
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   2. The inclosed space on which a building stands.
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   3. The sunken space or court, giving ingress and affording
      light to the basement of a building.
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   4. An extent of surface; a tract of the earth's surface; a
      region; as, vast uncultivated areas.
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   5. (Geom.) The superficial contents of any figure; the
      surface included within any given lines; superficial
      extent; as, the area of a square or a triangle.
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   6. (Biol.) A spot or small marked space; as, the germinative
      area.
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   7. Extent; scope; range; as, a wide area of thought.
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            The largest area of human history and man's common
            nature.                               --F. Harrison.
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   Dry area. See under Dry.
      [1913 Webster] Aread

	

	area
     n 1: a particular geographical region of indefinite boundary
          (usually serving some special purpose or distinguished
          by its people or culture or geography); "it was a
          mountainous area"; "Bible country" [syn: country]
     2: a particular environment or walk of life; "his social sphere
        is limited"; "it was a closed area of employment"; "he's
        out of my orbit" [syn: sphere, domain, orbit, field,
         arena]
     3: a subject of study; "it was his area of specialization";
        "areas of interest include..."
     4: a part of a structure having some specific characteristic or
        function; "the spacious cooking area provided plenty of
        room for servants"
     5: a part of an animal that has a special function or is
        supplied by a given artery or nerve; "in the abdominal
        region" [syn: region]
     6: the extent of a 2-dimensional surface enclosed within a
        boundary; "the area of a rectangle"; "it was about 500
        square feet in area" [syn: expanse, surface area]

	

	199 Moby Thesaurus words for "area":
   abode, academic discipline, academic specialty, acreage, airspace,
   amplitude, applied science, arena, arrondissement, art, bag,
   bailiwick, bearings, beat, belt, bench mark, bigness, block, body,
   breadth, bulk, caliber, circuit, classical education, close,
   compass, concern, confines, continental shelf, continuum,
   core curriculum, corridor, country, course, course of study, court,
   courtyard, coverage, cup of tea, curriculum, demesne, department,
   department of knowledge, depth, diameter, dimension, dimensions,
   discipline, district, division, domain, elective, emplacement,
   emptiness, empty space, enclosure, environs, expanse, expansion,
   extension, extent, field, field of inquiry, field of study, forte,
   galactic space, gauge, general education, general studies, girth,
   greatness, ground, heartland, height, hinterland, hole, humanities,
   infinite space, interstellar space, land, largeness,
   latitude and longitude, length, liberal arts, lieu, limit, line,
   locale, locality, location, locus, long suit, lot, magnitude,
   main interest, major, manner, mass, measure, measurement, metier,
   milieu, minor, natural science, neighborhood, nothingness,
   offshore rights, ology, orb, orbit, outer space, parade, part,
   parts, pet subject, pinpoint, place, placement, plot, point,
   position, precinct, precincts, premises, proportion, proportions,
   proseminar, province, pure science, purlieus, pursuit, quadrivium,
   quarter, radius, range, reach, realm, refresher course, region,
   room, round, salient, scale, science, scientific education, scope,
   section, seminar, site, situation, situs, size, social science,
   soil, space, spatial extension, specialism, speciality,
   specialization, specialty, sphere, spot, spread, square, stead,
   stretch, strong point, study, style, subdiscipline, subject,
   superficial extension, surface, technical education, technicality,
   technicology, technics, technology, terrain, territory, thing,
   three-mile limit, tract, trivium, twelve-mile limit, type,
   vicinage, vicinity, vocation, void, volume, walk, way, weakness,
   whereabout, whereabouts, width, yard, zone

	

	AREA. An enclosed yard or opening in a house; an open place adjoining to a
house. 1 Chit. Pr. 176.