croft

Noun

An enclosed piece of land, usually small and arable and used for small-scale food production, and often with a dwelling next to it; in particular, such a piece of land rented to a farmer (a crofter), especially in Scotland, together with a right to use separate pastureland shared by other crofters.

Verb

1. (intransitive) To do agricultural work on one or more crofts.
2. (archaic, transitive) To place (cloth, etc.) on the ground in the open air in order to sun and bleach it.

Pronounced as (IPA)

/kɹɒft/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: croft

Inherited from Old English: croft

Cognate with Middle Dutch: kroft

Cognate with Middle Low German: kroch

Cognate with Scots: croft

Inherited from Old English: cruft

Cognate with Middle Dutch: croft

Cognate with Dutch: krocht

Cognate with Middle Low German: krucht

Cognate with Old High German: cruft

Cognate with Middle High German: kruft

In summary

The noun is derived from Middle English croft, crofft, croffte, croofte, crofte (“croft”), from Old English croft (“enclosed field”); further etymology uncertain, but possibly from Proto-Germanic *kruftaz (“a hill; a curve”), from Proto-Indo-European *grewb- (“to bend; arch, crook, curve”); see also crop. The English word is cognate with Middle Dutch kroft, krocht, crocht (“high and dry land; a field on the downs”), Middle Low German kroch (“enclosed piece of farmland or pasture”), Scots croft, craft (“croft”).
The verb is derived from the noun.

Synonyms

farm

farmstead

garden

hacienda

patch

plantation

ranch

smallholding

small holding

vegetable garden

quillet