Back yard vs. Backyard | If you barbecue in your back yard on Sunday, you can eat leftovers from your backyard barbecue on Monday. When you talk about your back yard as a place, use two words. If you're describing a backyard activity or object, use one word.
Should backyard be one word?
The thing itself is a two-word phrase: you grow vegetables in your back yard. The adjective form that describes the location of something behind your house is a single word: you have a backyard vegetable garden.
How do you write backyard?
Backyard and back yard are two variants of a term that means the rear part of a property and can be used as an adjective or a noun.
- Both spellings are acceptable.
- Backyard is preferred in all contexts.
