Homeowners

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. People who have acquired ownership of a house or other type of residential property
2. Individuals who possess a dwelling, often including the land it is on
3. People who legally hold title to a place where they live

Etymology: "Homeowners" is the plural of "homeowner," a compound of "home" and "owner." Both halves are very old English words: "home" descends from Old English "hām," a word that traces back to Proto-Germanic, while "owner" comes from Middle English "ouner," formed on the verb "own," meaning to possess. The compound itself is a straightforward combination of the two, which is why its meaning is easy to read from its parts: someone who owns a home. The word is therefore transparent rather than surprising. Its first half kept the sense of a dwelling place that "home" has carried since Old English, and its second half kept the sense of rightful possession that "owner" has carried since the Middle English period. Nothing in the parts has shifted meaning, and the compound follows the usual English pattern of joining two plain nouns to name a role or status.