Ranch
/ræntʃ/noun
A large farm or estate, especially in the western United States, used for raising cattle, horses, or sheep.
Did you know?“Ranch” entered English through Spanish, where it was tied to the idea of a group of huts or a small settlement, not the open-range cowboy image we have now.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*sker-
“To turn, bend, or curve”
Latin
Latin
carricare
“To load a cart; later forms developed into words for a row or arrangement”
Late Latin
Latin
rancare
“A row, line, or cluster of huts”
Spanish
Spanish
rancho
“A group of huts; a small settlement; later a farm or place where people were fed”
18th-19th Century
English
ranch
“A cattle-raising estate, especially in the western Americas”