letting

letting — noun

1. A house, flat, or room that an owner offers for other people to live in, in exch

1.nounB1
Definition

A house, flat, or room that an owner offers for other people to live in, in exchange for regular payments called rent.

Example

Nala and her flatmates found a letting near the university for £750 a month.

countable noun with monthly price (£750)

The letting agency showed Élise three flats, but only one had a garden.

collocation: letting agency

Common collocations
  • student letting
  • holiday letting
  • short-term letting
  • furnished letting
  • private letting
Synonyms
  • rental

    More common in American English; 'rental' can also mean the act of renting (e.g. 'car rental'), while 'letting' is always a specific property.

  • leasehold property

    A formal legal term for a property held under a lease; less common in everyday conversation.

Usage Note

Frequently used in the phrase 'holiday letting' (a property rented for short vacations). The verb 'let' means 'offer for rent' from the landlord's point of view; the tenant 'rents' the property. This distinction is British English — American English uses 'rent' for both sides (e.g. 'The owner rents out the house').

Common Mistakes

The tenant decided to let a flat in Manchester.
The tenant decided to rent a flat in Manchester.
In British English, 'let' is used from the landlord's perspective (the owner lets the property to someone); the tenant 'rents' it from the owner.
The letting costs £1000 per month.
The rent is £1000 per month.
'Letting' refers to the property itself, not the amount of money paid. Use 'rent' for the price.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

'Letting', 'rental', 'lease', and 'tenancy' all refer to property arrangements, but they differ in focus. 'Letting' is a British noun for the actual property that a landlord offers to tenants — you walk into a letting and live there. 'Rental' is more general: it can describe the property (a rental property) or the transaction (car rental, rental agreement), and is the standard term in American English. 'Lease' emphasizes the legal contract: the document that sets the rules and duration — you sign a lease, not a letting. 'Tenancy' focuses on the tenant's period of occupation — you begin your tenancy on the first of the month. Example: 'Beatriz found a letting in Edinburgh, signed a one-year lease, and started her tenancy in September.'

letting ↗rental ↗lease ↗tenancy

Common collocations

Nouns

  • letting agency
  • letting fee
  • letting market
  • letting period

Phrases

  • holiday letting
  • short-term letting
  • student letting

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishModern English

The noun 'letting' comes from the verb 'let', which in its sense of 'allow someone to use property in return for payment' dates back to 16th-century English property law. The noun form, referring to the property itself rather than the action, became common in British real-estate usage during the 19th century as the urban rental market expanded.