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A residential home in Pathanapuram, Kerala-India

A home is a place of residence or refuge and comfort.^[1] It is usually a place in which an individual or a family can rest and be able to store personal property. Most modern-day households contain sanitary facilities and a means of preparing food. Animals have their own homes as well, either living in the wild or in a domesticated environment. A home has no physical definition, rather it is a mental or emotional state of belonging.

There are certain cultures in which members lack permanent homes, such as with nomadic people.

[edit] Terminology

Many wetlands are home to birds such as these Northern Shoveler ducks.

A houseboat on Lake Union in Seattle, Washington

The word "home" can be used for various types of residential community institutions in which people can live, such as nursing homes, group homes (orphanages for children, retirement homes for seniors, prisons for criminals, treatment facilities, etc.), and foster homes.

In computer terminology, a 'home' may refer to a starting view that branches off into other tasks, e.g. a homepage or a desktop. Many such home pages on the internet start with introductory information, recent news or events, and links to subpages. "Home" may also refer to a home directory which contains the personal files of a given user of the computer system.

[edit] Psychological impact

Since it can be said that humans are generally creatures of habit, the state of a person's home has been known to physiologically influence their behavior, emotions, and overall mental health.^{[citation needed]}

Some people may become homesick when they leave their home over an extended period of time. Sometimes homesickness can cause a person to feel actual symptoms of illness.

[edit] See also

Look up home in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

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