noun
courtyard, farmyard
B1
Hof (der) primarily means 'courtyard' or 'farmyard', an open area attached to a house or farm. It is masculine: singular der Hof, plural die Höfe (with umlaut). Note declension: genitive des Hofes; dative plural den Höfen. Common in place names and compounds.
Examples
Die Tiere wurden auf dem Hof versorgt, als der Bauer wegen Krankheit nicht kommen konnte.
The animals were cared for in the yard when the farmer could not come because of illness.
Die Kinder spielten den ganzen Nachmittag im Hof.
The children played in the courtyard all afternoon.
Der alte Bauernhof hat einen großen Hof für die Tiere.
The old farm has a large yard for the animals.
Details
Mnemonics
Imagine a house with an open central courtyard full of flowers — that's the Hof
sounds like English 'hof' — think 'hof' ~ 'hof' courtyard
der Hof — remember 'der' (masculine): picture the courtyard with a big male statue
Notes
Hof can mean a courtyard (inside a building complex) or a yard/farmyard. The plural is Höfe. Context determines whether it refers to an urban courtyard or rural farmyard.