Meaning & use
detached houses
Last updated
“detached houses” is a form of “detached house”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meaning
nounplural
Houses that stand alone, not joined to any other building, and usually have their own garden or yard.
Grammar: Plural noun; the singular is 'detached house'. It is a countable noun, so you can say 'a detached house' or 'two detached houses'.
Patterns
- a row of detached houses
- live in a detached house
- build detached houses
The new development will include twenty detached houses and a small park.
They moved from a flat to one of the detached houses on the edge of town.
Detached houses usually cost more than terraced ones because they have more space and privacy.
Word forms
| singular | detached house |
|---|
Common combinations
- a row of detached houses
- We walked past a row of detached houses with neat front gardens.
- detached house prices
- Detached house prices have risen sharply in this area.
- a four-bedroom detached house
- They are looking for a four-bedroom detached house near good schools.
- a detached house with a garage
- The property is a detached house with a garage and a large backyard.
Synonyms and how they differ
- single-family home
- Common in American English; it emphasizes that the house is for one family, but it does not always mean the house stands completely alone.
- stand-alone house
- A general term that means the same, but it is less common in everyday speech than 'detached house' in British English.
Opposites
Word family
- detached adjective
- Standing apart; not joined to another building.
- detached house noun
- The singular form.
Commonly confused: detached houses or semi-detached house?
detached houses vs semi-detached house
A semi-detached house shares one wall with another house, while a detached house stands completely alone.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'detached houses' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Option B is correct because 'one of the' is followed by a plural noun ('detached houses'). Option An is wrong because 'a' cannot be used with a plural noun. Option C is wrong because 'detached house' is singular and needs an article. Option D is grammatically correct but uses the singular, not the plural headword.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “detached houses”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.