House and home are commonly used words and usually interchangeable in regular conversations. However, there is more to it. These two words are similar but with a lot of differences in their actual meaning. Usually, we say someplace as a home where we feel comfortable to live. This comfort mostly comes from people around us. However, a house is generally pointed as a building that offers living but is not yet occupied by humans.
You must have heard this phrase “home is where the heart is.” You can feel the meaning of home just like this phrase. Like many people, are you also one of those who are using these words interchangeably? It would help if you learned the proper meaning of home and house before properly using the words in your sentences.
Home and house have been confusing people for decades. If you are one of them too, you must rectify yourself before you get embarrassed in front of someone.
Are you still wondering whether there are other differences between these two?
Let’s have a look at the differences between a home and a house.
What is a home?
A home is a place where humans live or take refuge. A house is where a person feels safe, accepted and he can safely put his belongings there. According to the dictionary, “a home is a place where one lives permanently, especially as a member of a family or household.” For example, you can say to a friend, “go to your home and take some rest.” A home is the closest to one’s heart.
As the definition says, a home can be anywhere, whether a garage, a trailer, a house, an apartment, or a motor home. The primary reason for a house to become a home is the inhabitation of a family or household. This means that people living in a shelter are sharing meals and living accommodation. Where ever a person feels comfortable living becomes home to him. A home can be a place where one grew up and find comfort.
We can refer to home as an emotional state of mind and an acceptance by a human mind. According to different researches, a person has a significant impact on the home on his attributes. His emotion, behavior, and mental health are greatly influenced by home.
Many studies found that people who stayed away from home for a more extended time start feeling ill. It’s due to homesickness. A home is always a permanent or semi-permanent residence for people. It can be occupied as a single-family, joint family, or even several families can live in a home.
Let’s understand the word home by using it in few sentences to find it easier to use it in general conversations.
- I’m going home now.
- It’s so lovely to be home with the people I love the most.
- Thank you, my dear, for inviting me to your beautiful home.
- My sister is going home to sleep.
- His home is right next to the supermarket.
- He loves his home, his animals, and his car.
What is a house?
When searched in the dictionary, the word house says: “A house is a building for human habitation, especially one that consists of a ground floor and one or more upper stories.” For example, this is how you can use the word house in a sentence. My partner and I are moving to a new house.
A house is just a structure that awaits to get occupied by humans. A house can have any map or design. It may have a single or many stories. A house can be unfurnished, furnished, raw, or just a vertical structure of bricks. The architect can design a house as he wants. He can make a terrace, garage, bedrooms, and bathrooms according to the requirements.
House be a Shelter
The word house came into existence by deriving it from an old English word, “Hus.” Hus used to mean shelter, dwelling, house or home”. As the house can be or cannot be a home, it also differs in size. A house is comparatively bigger than apartments and trailers but smaller than villas and castles. It can be a shelter, a hut, or fixed structures of cement, bricks, wood, and marble.
A house can be said a living quarters for humans to come. They come with basic facilities like electricity, sanitary and ventilation system. In this era of modernization, a house comes with many bedrooms, bathrooms, a kitchen, and living rooms. However, when compared to traditional houses, they were more agriculture-oriented. Old houses would have a space for sheltering animals and a place for the plantation of vegetables and fruits.
Designs of houses differ from each other due to many factors. These factors can be globalization, urbanization, social and economic, demographic, and technical. A house can also be designed according to cultural factors. So, everything depends on the financial and social needs of the person who is building the specific house.
Let’s understand the word house by using it in few sentences to find it easier to use it in general conversations.
- A house without parents is not home.
- Alex had moved to another house till her house gets renovated.
- Which one is your house among these buildings?
- My father built a beautiful house but had to sell it for financial needs.
- Your house is on fire!
- The house near Eden Road seems haunted to me.
Conclusion:
A house can be said as a building or structure built for humans to live in. So, in short, a home is where you live, where you feel comfortable, where you feel safe and when you have your own. Every home can be a house, but every house cannot be home. Every house can be bought, but you cannot buy a home.
In this article, you deeply understood the differences between a house and a home. A house is a physical structure made up of woods and bricks. A house can be furnished with beautiful furniture, carpets, and curtains. In contrast, a home is a place with an emotional attachment to someone. It can be an attachment with a family, friends, children, or partner.
Hence proving an old quote: “one can buy a house but not a home.”
Also read: Difference between prepaid and postpaid.