Town
Pronunciation
- IPA: /taʊ̯n/
- Rhymes: -aÊŠn
Origin
Middle English, from Old English tūn ("enclosure, village"), from Proto-Germanic *tūną ("fence") (compare West Frisian tún, Dutch tuin ("garden"), German Zaun, Danish/Swedish tun), from Gaulish dunon ("hill, hillfort") (compare Welsh din ("hill"), Irish dún ("fortress")), from Proto-Celtic *dūnom, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewh₂- ("to finish, come full circle"), (compare Hittite (tuhhušta, "it is finished"), Latin fūnus ("burial"), Ancient Greek θνητός (thnētos, "mortal"), θάνατος (thanatos, "death"), (thaneīn, "to die"), Sanskrit (ádhvanīt, "he vanished")).
Noun
town
(plural towns)- A settlement; an area with residential districts, shops and amenities, and its own local government; especially one larger than a village and smaller than a city.
- 2013-05-10, Audrey Garric, As towns continue to grow, replanting vegetation has become a form of urban utopia and green roofs are spreading fast. Last year 1m square metres of plant-covered roofing was built in France, as much as in the US, and 10 times more than in Germany, the pioneer in this field. In Paris 22 hectares of roof have been planted, out of a potential total of 80 hectares.
- This town is really dangerous because these youngsters have Beretta handguns.
- (US) Any more urbanized center than the place of reference.
- 1898, Winston Churchill, The Celebrity Chapter 4, Judge Short had gone to town, and Farrar was off for a three days' cruise up the lake. I was bitterly regretting I had not gone with him when the distant notes of a coach horn reached my ear, and I descried a four-in-hand winding its way up the inn road from the direction of Mohair.
- I'll be in Yonkers, then I'm driving into town to see the Knicks at the Garden tonight.
- (UK, historical) A rural settlement in which a market was held at least once a week.
- The residents (as opposed to gown: the students, faculty, etc.) of a community which is the site of a university.
- (colloquial) Used to refer to a town or similar entity under discussion.
- 1898, Winston Churchill, The Celebrity Chapter 2, I had occasion ... to make a somewhat long business trip to Chicago, and on my return ... I found Farrar awaiting me in the railway station. He smiled his wonted fraction by way of greeting, ..., and finally leading me to his buggy, turned and drove out of town.
- Call me when you get to town.
- (legal) A municipal organization, such as a corporation, defined by the laws of the entity of which it is a part.
Usage notes
An urban city is typically larger than a rural town, which in turn is typically larger than a village. In rural areas, a town is considered urban. In urban areas, a town is considered suburban; a village in the suburbs.