Scrapyard

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A location where discarded vehicles and metal objects are collected and stored to be recycled or dismantled
2. An area designated for gathering and holding old cars and metal materials intended for salvage
3. A yard used for accumulating old and damaged vehicles along with metal parts for recycling purposes

Etymology: "Scrap" and "yard" are both old English words, and "scrapyard" simply joins them into a place where scrap is kept. "Scrap" comes from Middle English, probably from Old Norse, and originally meant a small fragment or leftover piece of something, such as a scrap of cloth or paper. "Yard" traces back to Old English "geard," meaning an enclosed piece of land, which is also the root of "garden" and "gird." The compound works like many English place names: the yard is the enclosure, and the scrap is what it holds. Over time the sense of "scrap" widened from small bits of material to discarded metal in general, which is why the word now most often calls to mind heaps of rusting cars and machinery waiting to be melted down and recycled.

Synonyms: junkyard, wrecking yard, salvage yard, auto salvage yard, recycling center